MORSE: Under the Radar Free Agents and Morse's Morsels

Before we start to look at potential Patriots Free Agent signings, I have to bring down everyone’s expectations.

Even though, according to Patscap Miguel Benzan, the Patriots have $41M under the cap, Robert Kraft will likely not allow them to spend to that amount. According to Greg Bedard at Boston Sports Journal, Kraft has stated that he will spend one year (last year they spent $46M over the cap) to balance out the three-year average that is required by the Collective Bargaining agreement. The Patriots have a major need on the Edge. That means they won’t spend this year and next. Bedard estimates the Patriots will have up to $33M to spend. That number would include anything they give to Christian Gonzalez in a pro-rated Signing Bonus in his re-negotiated contract extension.

“If your favorite team’s general manager can’t find a good fit at edge rusher this offseason, tell him to take a hike.” This is the opening line from ESPN’s Ben Solak on the upcoming Free Agents and Draft Prospects for every position. Ranking deepest, thinnest positions in NFL free agency, draft – ESPN. Take the time to read the entire article.

Some initial thoughts:

K’Lavon Chaisson is an Undrafted Free Agent, and Harold Landry will be 30, coming off knee surgery in this off-season. Chaisson has indicated that he wants to come back and play for Mike Vrabel. Pro Football Focus ranks Chaisson as the #91 ranked Free Agent in their top 250 Free Agents. He is hurt with a loaded Free Agent class and a loaded Draft Class. Spotrac has an estimated AAV at slightly under $9M a season. If the Patriots offered anything near that number, he should jump at the chance to sign with them, given this loaded market. Anything more than that, they should walk away.
The Patriots need a left guard. It was stupid of the Patriots to go into the season with rookies at Left Tackle and Left Guard. The Patriots were able to get away with it for most of the season because of the weak competition they were playing. In the playoffs, they were completely exposed. Any rookie trying to start on the line needs a strong veteran presence next to them so they can lean on their experience. Neither rookie could lean on the other, and their mistakes were compounded. Jared Wilson needs to move back to center. No Offensive Guard can play in a two-point stance, and that is what Wilson ended up doing last year. In my opinion, Ben Brown played better than Wilson and should have been the Left Guard.
There are several players to watch as Free Agent left Guards. Joel Bitonio would be a one-year rental as a 35-year-old veteran. He has not decided what he is going to do, whether he will retire or come back as a Free Agent. There are several other names to watch. David Anderson and Alijah Vera-Tucker are younger players, but Anderson is going to break the bank, and Vera-Tucker has a bad Injury history. That leaves Pittsburgh Left Guard Issac Seumalo. PFF ranks him the #17 Free Agent on the market. The 10-year veteran will be 32 next season. He finished with a 74.8 PFF Grade,12^th of 81 Guards. Spotrac has him with a Market Value of $9.6M AAV. That may be more than the Patriots are willing to pay. Vera-Tucker, the former 1^st Round pick of the Jets, is a good player when he is on the field. The trouble is that he has had three season-ending injuries in his brief career. He would be a low-cost signing with big question marks.
I identified Tight End as a need last draft season. I believe the Patriots made a mistake by not selecting Mason Taylor in the 2^nd round and taking Tre’Veyon Henderson. This isn’t a knock against Henderson, who had a very good rookie season, but the fact that they didn’t look to the future and take a TE. The Patriots got away with two 31-year-old Tight Ends last season. The other fact was that the Draft Class last year was loaded with good running backs, and they could have taken one later in the draft. That being said, there are a few really good Tight Ends available in Travis Kelce, Dallas Goedert, Kyle Pitts, David Njoku, and Isaiah Likely (Everett and Malden HS) on the market. All of these players are out of the Patriots’ reach.
There are two players I am interested in. The first is Charlie Kolar, the 3^rd TE in Baltimore. He was targeted just 13 times with 10 receptions for 142 Yards (14.2 YPC) and 2 TDs. The 6’6”, 257-pound TE is a decent blocker, too. Spotrac projected his market value at $1.5M AAV. The other player is Foster Moreau, a blocking TE from New Orleans. He is not much in the pass game, but the Patriots played with Jack Westover as the 3^rd TE all season. Anything is better than Westover.
There are quite a few Runningbacks available, and one name stands out to me, and that is Tyler Allgeier from Atlanta. Allgeier is ranked 30^th by PFF among the top 250 Free Agents. The 5’11” 220-pound bowling ball of a back had 142 carries for 514 yards, 3.6 YPC, and 8 TDs. He also added 14 receptions on 16 Targets for 96 yards (6.9 YPC) and 0 TDs. His Spotrac number is $1.8M AAV for the 25-year-old back. The Patriots released Antonio Gibson today, coming off major knee surgery. Releasing Gibson saved them $2.135M off the cap. That savings could pay for Allgeier or Kolar.
Jaylinn Hawkins is the #1 Free Safety by PFF. He ranks 37^th in their top 250 Free Agents. Hawkins was the 70^th ranked Free Agent by PFF. This is what PFF had to say about Hawkins “Hawkins was one of the league’s most quietly impressive defenders in 2025. His 81.3 overall PFF grade ranked sixth among qualifying safeties entering the AFC championship game, and he also placed second in PFF run-defense grade (86.3) and seventh in PFF coverage grade (79.7). At 28, Hawkins is well-positioned to command a lucrative contract, whether he remains in New England or hits the open market. Spotrac has him at $8.3M Market Value AAV. That is a reasonable amount. The competition at Free Safety is immense. There are 5 other Free Safeties expected to command more than Hawkins. Additionally, the Draft Class is loaded, further drawing down his market. He has stated that he wants to return, and anything near the $8M mark, he should take. The Draft is so loaded, I might take two safeties. Hawkins is 28, and this will probably be his last contract.
An alternative to Hawkins is Andre Cisco of the Jets. CBS Sports had this to say about Cisco “He appeared in just eight games in 2025 due to a pectoral injury and is now back on the market at just 25 years old. Cisco’s numbers as a tackler and in coverage were down this season, but he had been solid in both areas earlier in his career. Plus, it’s not as if Cisco had a ton of talent around him in what was a rough year for the Jets. If the ball production returns, he’ll be a valuable contributor again in 2026.” Cisco had no interceptions in those 8 games played.
The linebacker position is a position of need for the Patriots. However, they won’t have the money under the cap to pay for a top free-agent linebacker, nor do they have a top-10 draft pick to select one of the top prospects. Dennis Gardeck is an under-the-radar LB / DE who played for Jacksonville. He is mostly a special-teams player and situational pass rusher. In 2025, he had just 2.5 Sacks. But for players with at least 100 pass rushing snaps, he had the #2 Pressure Rate in the league at 19.5%. The 6’1”, 242-pound Linebacker can also play TE and Fullback. He has 4.57 speed, which will be an advantage on ST. Spotrac has his Market Salary as $2.5M AAV for the 31-year-old, 8-year veteran.
At Wide Receiver, Romeo Doubs is a 26-year-old, 4th-year underachiever. On average over a 17-game schedule, Doubs would be targeted 92 Targets and 58 Receptions for 698 yards, 12.0 YPC, and 6 TDs. His Spotrac Market Value is projected at $12M. The 6’2”, 202-pound receiver possesses strong hands but limited 4.52 speed. Pro Football Focus has him as the #44 Free Agent, but also lists him as an ideal #3 receiver.

Morse’s Morsels

Combine Activities

Players started to arrive on Sunday. The PK, DL & LB were the 1^st to arrive. On Monday, they have Registration, Pre-Exam, and Team Interviews. On Tuesday, they have the physical exams, recorded studies, and teaminterviews. On Wednesday, it’s the ortho exam, media interviews, kicking workout, NFLPA meetings, and team interviews. Thursday, they have measurements and on-field workouts. Friday, they finish up with bench press, and then they depart. Each of the 4 groups progresses this way through Monday of next week.

Patriots Hire Defensive Assistant

Pete Thamel of ESPN.com reported that B.J. Edmonds would leave his post as the Southern Miss running backs coach to join the Patriots. Thamel’s colleague Mike Reiss reports that the Patriots are listing Edmonds as a defensive assistant.

Edmonds worked as a coaching intern for the Patriots last summer and had only been in his role at Southern Miss for a short time before opting to make the move to the NFL.

Edmonds worked as a defensive analyst at Duke for the last two seasons, and he was an assistant at Utah State for three years before joining the Blue Devils.

Patriots Release Antonio Gibson

As mentioned above, the Patriots have released RB Antonio Gibson. Gibson was hurt on a kickoff return and required knee surgery. His release frees up $ 2.131M in cap space. Gibson had a big Week 2, 90-yard Kickoff Return TD against Miami.

Eliot Wolf Scheduled to Speak at the Combine Tuesday at 10AM

Contrary to the previous administration, Eliot Wolf is scheduled to meet with the National Media at 10 on Tuesday at the Combine. I suspect the interview and questions will have benign answers, as I am sure they will not disclose anything on Free Agency, Draft Strategy, or players they are going to interview. Mike Reiss reported on Sunday that Head Coach Mike Vrabel will speak at the Combine on Wednesday.

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About Mark Morse

Merrimack Valley native and lifelong fan of the New England Patriots. My earliest memories of the Patriots were attending as a child with my dad, the off-season practice at Phillips Academy. I was at the Patriots game at Harvard Stadium in 1970 where Bob “Harpo” Gladieux was called out of the stands by the stadium announcer over the PA to play in the game. Analyzing the draft since ESPN first started to televise it in 1980 and former writer for the Lowell Sun Newspaper.

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Tags: Edge Rusher Eliot Wolf Issac Seumalo Jaylinn Hawkins K'Lavon Chaisson Mike Vrabel New England Patriots NFL Combine NFL Free Agency Offensive Line Romeo Doubs Running Back Salary Cap Tight End Tyler Allgeier

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1 Comment

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Paul from RI/Atlanta

3 months ago

Normally I totally agree with Morse and find him to be the most underrated Pats analyst. He’s spot on again with Wilson. I too would have preferred not to go the season with 2 rooks on the left side but I don’t 100% blame the rooks for the SB. I blame our coaches. They inexplicably left Campbell alone whilst getting thru the playoffs with help from Munford and Westover. If we are going to pay $10m for a guard, then I want David Edwards. That said, we won’t and I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t sign a guard and… Read more »

MORSE: Under the Radar Free Agents and Morse’s Morsels