The New England Patriots have entered a new era now that Mike Vrabel has returned to the franchise he called home as an NFL player to take the reins as the team's head coach.
Vrabel has been known as a no-nonsense coach since his days with the Tennessee Titans. His time as a former linebacker in New England allows him to see things differently than other coaches throughout the league, and that helps him get the most out of his players, regardless of which side of the ball they're on.
With that being the case, it shouldn't be surprising to see a former first-round pick who had his issues elsewhere in the league find his footing with the Patriots under the watch of Vrabel.
K'Lavon Chaisson Signing Is Already Paying Off for New England Patriots
The Jacksonville Jaguars selected former LSU Tigers standout linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Despite having no major injury issues in North Florida, Chaisson played in at least 15 games in four of his five seasons with the Jaguars, his production on the field did not live up to the expectations for a linebacker selected in the first round.
Fast forward to today, and the defender is on a one-year, $3 million deal with New England and is already turning heads as a standout player throughout the team's offseason program. According to Chad Graff of The Athletic, Chaisson has been so impressive that there is already chatter he could steal some of the playing time away from 2023 second-round draft pick Keion White.
"Landry is probably a starter on one end, and White is probably a starter on the other. But Chaisson was impressive this spring and could eat into White’s playing time if White doesn’t have a good camp."
This is a good problem for Vrabel and company to have. Given the elements that the Patriots play in during the latter portion of their regular season schedule, you can never have enough players on the defensive side of the ball who can get after an opposing quarterback or plug up a hole before a running back can hit it.
Fans in New England will find out just how effective Chaisson and the rest of the new additions to the Patriots' roster will be once the 2025 campaign kicks off against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sept. 7.