Ten days separate the New England Patriots from the NFL Draft and the No.4 selection on April 24th leaves fans guessing on which direction the team will go.
To begin the offseason, first-year head coach Mike Vrabel did most of his work on the defensive side of the ball during free agency, handing out lucrative deals to Milton Williams, Carlton Davis, and Harold Landry.
Beefing up the defensive front with new faces led to multiple former Patriots defensive linemen moving on to their next teams during this offseason.
New England traded Davon Godchaux to the Saints for a late-round pick before free agency started. In addition, Deatrich Wise Jr. signed with the Commanders, and this former Patriots defensive tackle happily found a new home in the AFC North.
Daniel Ekuale Sees Great Fit With Steelers
The 31-year-old Ekaule signed a one-year, $2.8 million dollar deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers in mid-March. He joined the Steelers after spending the previous four seasons in a Patriots uniform.
After a career-best year in New England that included 24 solo tackles and one sack, Ekuale recently spoke about his decision to join the rival Pittsburgh Steelers. The move to another historic NFL franchise came easy for Ekuale in free agency, and the Patriots' signings along the defensive line could have attributed to Ekuale's departure as well.
"Watching film on them when I was with the Patriots – I really like the scheme they use. It fits with how I played with the Patriots. Striking hands – using those to get off blocks – that’s my style. A lot of teams don’t like their defensive linemen use their hands – they want them to just try and penetrate as fast as they can. And, I’m really looking forward to playing next to Hall of Fame players like Cam and T.J. [Watt}."Daniel Ekuale
Ekuale will join a disruptive group of Steelers up front, playing alongside four-time All-Pro edge T.J. Watt and four-time All-Pro defensive tackle Cameron Heyward. This is a substantial increase in talent from playing with the Patriots, who recorded a league-low 28 sacks in 2024.
As Ekuale addressed the similarities between the Patriots' and Steelers' schemes on the defensive line, the Steelers recorded 12 more sacks and 21 more takeaways than the Patriots last year.
With the influx of talent acquired in free agency and possibly more coming in the draft, the Patriots defensive line should see much more success this season. The return of a healthy Christian Barmore and another offseason of improvement for Keion White will help the cause as well.
New England fans won't have to wait long to see Ekuale again, as the Patriots are scheduled to face the Steelers at Gillette Stadium this season.