3 Patriots New England Can't Afford to Let Hit Free Agency in 2025

3. Daniel Ekuale, DE

The 31-year-old Ekuale stepped in for Christian Barmore after he was diagnosed with blood clots and missed the first 10 games of the season. In that span of time, Ekuale held his own, as he recorded 52 total tackles, two tackles for loss, and a sack.

Like Christian Elliss, Ekaule had to jump a lot of hurdles to get to where he is today.

Coming out of Washington State, Ekuale went undrafted in the 2018 NFL Draft and was signed to the Cleveland Browns practice squad in September 2018.

He spent two years with Cleveland, before making his debut in 2019. The Browns waived Ekaule in September 2020.

The Jacksonville Jaguars then took a chance on Ekuale in 2020. He was promoted from the practice squad to the active roster. He recorded his first career sack during that season with the Jags but was waived by the team in 2021.

He has been a New England Patriot ever since, moving back and forth from the practice squad to the active roster, as 2024 was the most productive season of his career.

Ekuale excels against the run, where he had a 62.7 run defense grade on PFF, ranking 48th out of 219 eligible defensive linemen.

With Christian Barmore coming back into the fold and the emergence of Keion White, Ekuale would be a valuable run-stopper and depth piece for the Patriots' defensive line in 2025. He played 64.6% of the Patriots defensive snaps this past season.

The Patriots front office should consider bringing back Ekuale, even if it's a one-year deal. He could slot behind Barmore and White to help stop the run.

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