The New England Patriots have more needs than you can count heading into the NFL offseason, and while their most glaring holes are offensively, they could definitely stand to improve their defense, too.
The Patriots have more cap room than any other team in the league, so they can certainly blow some cash on multiple positions, and they may already be targeting a major upgrade at linebacker.
Doug Kyed and Andrew Callahan of The Boston Herald have reported that New England may be prepared to make a run at New York Jets breakout star Jamien Sherwood in free agency.
“Defensively, rumor has it the Patriots covet Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood, who fits the new prototype Vrabel is seeking at that position,” Callahan and Kyed wrote.
Sherwood is coming off of a monster 2024 campaign in which he racked up 158 tackles and a couple of sacks. His 98 solo tackles led the NFL, and he posted an impressive 77.1 run defense grade over at Pro Football Focus.
The 25-year-old, who played his collegiate football at Auburn, was selected by the Jets in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
He had a very limited role over the first three seasons of his career, with this most productive campaign during that span coming in 2023 when he totaled 46 tackles while playing in just 17 percent of New York's defensive snaps.
This past year, however, Sherwood's snap count rocketed up to 93 percent as he established himself as one of the most dynamic linebackers in football.
Sherwood isn't an edge rusher, which will surely diminish his value on the open market, but while middle linebackers have been somewhat marginalized, they are still important, and the Patriots could definitely use the youngster in their front seven.
