Patriots Address Major Need By Signing Dre’Mont Jones

The New England Patriots are expected to sign Baltimore Ravens’ edge rusher Dre’Mont Jones. 

The Patriots will sign Jones to a three-year, $39 million contract. The defending AFC champions improve one of their biggest weaknesses from last season.

Jones was acquired by the Ravens in a mid-season trade with the Tennessee Titans. He had seven sacks and 55 pressures, which were both career highs. Under Titans’ defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson, Jones was used as the primary edge rusher. Meanwhile, Ravens’ defensive coordinator Zach Orr was much more aggressive in sending multiple defenders at the quarterback. This led to Jones getting fewer sacks but more pressures. 

The Ravens recently traded for Maxx Crosby from the Las Vegas Raiders. The Crosby trade made Jones expendable for the Ravens.

The Patriots had 34 sacks last season, but most of them were from linebackers. Although Jones has played linebacker in the past, he is expected to play defensive end for the Patriots. 

The Patriots promoted Zak Kuhr from inside linebackers coach to defensive coordinator. Kuhr’s system is similar to Orr’s in its aggression. The main difference is that Kuhr is more focused on stopping the run than the passing game.

Jones doesn’t have much experience with this type of scheme. However, he was part of versatile schemes with the Denver Broncos in 2021 and 2022. Jones had nine tackles for loss in both of those seasons. Jones was able to work in a system that asked him to fill many roles, so that should help him adjust to the Patriots’ system. 

Now that the edge rusher has been solved, the Patriots will look to address their other major issues: safety and offensive tackle. The Super Bowl saw Drake Maye get sacked six times. He set a record for most sacks taken in a single postseason with 20.