The New England Patriots have made some splashes in free agency, most recently signing former Chicago Bears star safety Kevin Byard. Although they’ve acquired some strong reinforcements, they’ve also lost some key contributors, including K’Lavon Chaisson.
Chaisson's departure was likely solidified once the Patriots signed Dre’Mont Jones on Monday. It wasn’t official until Wednesday morning, though, when NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported the Washington Commanders are signing Chaisson to a one-year, $12 million deal. Chaisson had a breakout season with the Patriots, posting career-highs in both sacks (7.5) and hurries (34).
He was an instrumental part of the Patriots’ turnaround and played a valuable role in their run to the Super Bowl, logging three sacks and 10 hurries across four playoff games. Although the Patriots still have plenty of time to strengthen their pass rush, they will soon realize they made a huge mistake letting Chaisson walk.
Letting Chaisson Walk is a Huge Mistake by the Patriots
While the Patriots’ pass rush improved in 2025, they still ranked towards the bottom half in the league in generating pressure, sitting at 22nd in sacks (35), 23rd in quarterback hits (88), and 24th in pressure percentage (20.3 percent). Even though Harold Landry III led the team in sacks (8.5), his production noticeably dipped as the season moved forward, with the veteran logging just five sacks in his last 13 games.
Despite Chaisson finishing second on the team in sacks, he was, by far, their most consistent pass rusher and one of the few players who showed up during the playoffs. Outside of Landry and Chaisson, New England didn’t have a dependable pass rusher.
Although Christian Barmore and Milton Williams generated pressure in the interior, it rarely translated to sacks, as the two combined for 5.5 on the season. The only player who gave them anything off the edge was undrafted free agent Elijah Ponder, and he didn’t receive consistent playing time until Week 10.
Now with Chaisson gone, the Patriots’ pass rush gets thinner, and they’ll need help from Jones to fill his void. Throughout his career, Jones has served as a pass rush specialist, accumulating 37.5 sacks across 108 regular-season games. This past season, Jones recorded his career-high in sacks (7), while also logging 28 hurries and 43 total tackles.
Chaisson Has Yet to Reach His Potential
While Jones has been a reliable player, he doesn’t offer the upside that Chaisson does. At his best, Jones is a complementary piece and can’t be relied upon to be a team’s top pass rusher, while Chaisson is just entering his prime and has displayed tremendous strides in his development over the last two seasons.
And yet the Patriots not only decided to give Jones a long-term deal, but also gave him more annually than Chaisson received from the Commanders. For the Patriots to do this, they clearly had to believe Jones could provide them with better production.
If Jones were a far superior player than against the run, it would make sense for them to move on, but that’s not the case here. The Patriots could’ve gotten the same production at a cheaper cost with Arden Key, who has a connection with head coach Mike Vrabel during his time with the Tennessee Titans.
Now, the Patriots must live with their decision, and in three years, we’ll know if they made the right one. While they opted with Jones, New England still needs to strengthen its depth on the edge.
Unfortunately, all the quality edge rushers are gone, leaving older or unproven players. They’ll have to resort to addressing the need throughout the draft, and luckily for Patriots’ fans, the franchise has already met with several projected first-round edge rushers.
Hopefully, the decision to move on from Chaisson works in their favor, as going with an older veteran could come back to haunt them down the road.