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Player Signing Safety Kevin Byard signs 1 year deal

The good: He was an All-Pro and a Pro Bowler in 2025, so he’s still a good player.

The bad: He turns 33 in August.

It's a 1yr deal. Last year he had his most interceptions since his sophomore season - - he clearly isn't slowing down in the near term.
 
I wanted either Nick Cross or Kevin Byard… we got the older guy. But he made the All Pro and Pro Bowl team last year so he still has some juice. We needed another starting safety and a QB of the defense back there, in that regard he’s better and more experienced than Cross
 
Good stop gap signing. Vrabel knows him well. He got 7 INT’s, but he did also give up 7 TD’s like Hawkins.
 
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A veteran who is instinctive, will not make mistakes, can help Woodson, and can train a rookie like VJ Payne.
(And help the linebackers, I'm gonna keep poking this in there every time until they do something)
 
This signing still stings.

It was a completely unnecessary and terrible signing when you follow the timeline of events. He is the most overrated Patriot of the 2020’s.

The good news is that the Pats were off the hook completely when they traded him to Pittsburgh.
 
WTF. This doesn't meet the better, cheaper younger mantra.
Well he did continue on to say the players they have are trying to not let that happen.

Since Hawkins is a FA, they don't have anyone for the quote to be applicable to
 
I guess this is the clarity on Hawkins.
 
Gonzalez
Davis
Jones

Byard
Woodson

In the running for best secondary in the NFL & their best unit since 2018.

It's a good move. Make your best unit even more impenetrable. One of the glossed over things was how insane the secondary was playing all post season. If that's what they're gonna continue to look like, and we continue to improve the personnel within LB/DL, it gives breathing space for Maye to continue to learn.

A good addition with rippling effects.
 
Nice signing despite his age.

The Patriots were only 21st in takeaways last year bringing in his ball hawking ability will greatly help this defense
 
The good: He was an All-Pro and a Pro Bowler in 2025, so he’s still a good player.

The bad: He turns 33 in August.
You forget to add to the “good” is that it’s only one year deal.
 
1. Very good player, still has a lot of juice left
2. High level leadership traits, potential captain
3. Ball hawk, can play up close or deep, seems to be a good match for Woodson
4. Very good value, $9M is nothin'
5. Assume they will draft a player in the middle rounds and look to start that player next to Woodson in '27. If that doesn't culminate, they could easily re-sign Byard, or explore free agency again.
 
Kind of surprised its a one year deal. I know he's 32 but that's not bad and coming off an All-Pro season if I'm not mistaken so I would have thought he would warrant a multi-year deal with at least 20 mil at signing
 
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