Pats Pulpit
The New England Patriots reshaped their defensive edge during Mike Vrabel’s first year as head coach in 2025, signing longtime Vrabel pupil in Tennessee Harold Landry and taking a flier on 2020 first-round selection K’Lavon Chaisson.
New England’s sack numbers improved from 2024, with Landry and Chaisson proving to be more effective, but only to an extent. Those totals still placed the defense below the NFL average, so the team decided to make additions.
In the next edition of our Patriots training camp preview series, we’ll take a look at New England’s edge-rushing corps in its entirety and discuss the biggest takeaways heading into the summer practices. Veterans will report to the facility on July 24.
*Denotes player on the Pats Pulpit 53-man roster projection
Starters: Harold Landry III (30)*, Dre’Mont Jones (29)* | Backups: Gabe Jacas (22/R)*, Elijah Ponder (23)*, Bradyn Swinson (23)*, Jesse Luketa (27), Quintayvious Hutchins (23/R), Xavier Holmes (24/R)
Head coach Mike Vrabel and Co. began the offseason by adding hybrid defensive end and linebacker Dre’Mont Jones to aid veteran Harold Landry in his efforts to return from knee surgery earlier this offseason. Jones rushes the passer with power and can line up at multiple spots along the formation.
The Patriots then decided the Jones upgrade wasn’t enough and selected an aggressive pass rusher in the second round of the draft, Gabe Jacas. However, the rookie has yet to practice with the team this offseason and sign his rookie deal, leaving uncertainty about how prepared he’ll be for the start of training camp and next season.
New England also has two second-year rushers returning in former undrafted free agent Elijah Ponder and 2025 fifth-round pick Bradyn Swinson. Both will look to continue making positive strides throughout summer camp.
Local Boston College product and seventh-round selection Quintayvious Hutchins and rookie minicamp tryout Xavier Holmes add further developmental depth as the Patriots try to remain younger at the position with Landry and Jones sitting atop the depth chart.
Additionally, after three seasons with the Arizona Cardinals and a practice-squad stint with the Los Angeles Rams, Jesse Luketa also slots in as an experienced and versatile option, rushing the passer, setting the edge in run defense, or helping the special-teams units.
With neither Landry nor Jacas participating in practice yet — the former was placed on the active/PUP list this week while the latter remains unsigned — younger players like Ponder and Swinson have seen greater opportunities on the field.
In the absence of both players, Ponder, who had four sacks in his final eight games last season, has heavily repped with the first-team defense during the spring sessions. The defensive coaches are seemingly big fans of what he brings to the table.
“I’ve got very high expectations for [Ponder]. Very,” outside linebacker coach Mike Smith said ahead of mandatory minicamp practice on June 10. “All these guys have done great all spring, but he really, really...
