Giardi: How might Vrabel deploy some of his defensive pieces?

After a busy first week of free agency, the Patriots have fortified their defense. On my podcast (All 32 with Will Parkinson, found wherever you get our pods), I said they are now — at the very least — a top-12 unit. That's assuming health, of course, and with me still wondering if Christian Barmore can be counted on physically (no one can know that with any certainty).

Considering that this group couldn't stop the run or the pass, there's no arguing that Vrabel and Company have already raised expectations by raising the floor. You should be excited by that. So, how do the new pieces fit with the ones remaining on the roster?

I quoted league sources calling Milton Williams Mike Vrabel's new Jeffery Simmons. That caught on like wildfire, with good reason. Because that's the Pats' plan internally. Williams is not just an interior penetrator, but if the Pats go into a week wanting to be bigger up front, he can kick outside and be a 290-pound edge-setter. Yes, the newly minted millionaire 50 times over must be more consistent against the ground game. Still, he's physically capable and has shown flashes, especially early in his career. That will no longer be sufficient, but by all accounts, Williams is a hard driver and diligent. He wants to be great. The Pats will push him to get there. 

Adding Williams and another free agent on a much smaller deal, edge K'Lavon Chaisson, should benefit Keion White. He got significant attention last season because the Pats didn't have another soul who could threaten the quarterback in obvious passing situations, and his pass rush productivity faded as the year went on. Having Chaisson and Harold Landry will give defensive coordinator Terrell Williams more options with the physically gifted White. 

If you watched the Titans at any point during their successful run under Vrabel, think of Denico Autry. He's 6'5" and 285 pounds, which is the same ballpark White's in. Autry played on the edge but was thrust into the 'Leo' role in passing situations. That's a hybrid spot for a weakside defensive end, allowing him to stand (at times) in odd fronts, often pinning his ears back from a wide-nine position. During his three seasons under Vrabel, Autry had 9, 8, and 11.5 sacks, averaging 57 pressures per year (per PFF). I'm very protective of my summer, but the possibility of White in that role has me wanting to fast-forward to late July and August to see what it will look like and if White's talents can be fully unlocked. 

At the linebacker level, the Pats added Robert Spillane. At 229 pounds (he played at closer to 225 with Vegas), he should slot into the LILB role that guys like David Long (5'11", 225 lbs), Rashaan Evans (6'2", 232 lbs) and Azeez Al-Shaair (6'2", 228 lbs) occupied for Vrabel from 2020-23. Faster, lighter, and more explosive (well, Evans not so much). But who will play alongside? 

Former Titan Jack Gibbens is reportedly contemplating a visit. He started for Tennessee in 2023-24 and had a nice year. Gibbens is 242 pounds but runs well. A depth piece, or could he, along with Spillane, push Ja'Whaun Bentley and or Jahlani Tavai off the roster? It's clear Vrabel is cutting as many ties with the past as possible, and Bentley, a captain, is coming off a season-ending injury. But the veteran is getting leaner, and I'm told he's currently in the mid-230s (he played in high 240s/low 250s previously). A directive from the new staff? Feels that way, doesn't it? And perhaps it is a sign that Bentley does, in fact, have a future in Foxborough.

Tavai is better suited to playing outside than inside, where he was forced to work post-Bentley injury. But at 255 pounds last year, Tavai doesn't fit the size profile of a Vrabel LB. Landry has been listed at 251, but he played at a significantly lighter weight (and yet held up against the run). Monty Rice (currently on the Pats roster) filled Landry's spot after he was lost for the season in 2022-23, and he did the job at around 230 pounds. Tavai has never been much of a pass rusher, but he's not been asked to do it often. There may be a different version of him this new staff can uncover. Or...

A release of Tavai pre-June 1 would cost the Pats $6.3 million in a dead cap hit, and a trade for a pick would be $4.3 mil in sunk cost. That's hardly prohibitive, especially considering the Pats have somewhere between $94 and $101 million in remaining cap space. 

Safety is another area where Vrabel/Williams may not have the exact fits they did at Tennessee's height. Kevin Byard was an absolute monster during those years. He played everywhere: slot, in the box, but mostly at free safety. Byard was also a turnover-creating machine (at least four interceptions in five of six seasons during one stretch), and his snap breakdown was basically 2-to-1 in terms of being a deep safety versus closer to the line of scrimmage (during his peak years).

The Pats don't have that in Kyle Dugger or Jabril Peppers, their two well-compensated players. 

Peppers is likelier to be the 1-of-1 comp, whereas we know - or we should know (!) - the best way to maximize Dugger is by letting him play most of his snaps in the box. He's good going forward. Sideways and backward? Not so much, although the ankle injury he played with most of last year certainly hampered his mobility and change of direction skills. Dugger had been more of a turnover creator in previous years. 

Peppers, on the other hand, did a solid job in 2023 playing more as the free safety, but again, that's not what I'd consider his best fit. He, too, is solid in the box. It allows his attacking style and surprising physicality for his frame to come through. When both players were healthy in 2023-24, the Belichick coaching staff had Peppers lined up at free safety for 424 snaps and put Dugger in the box for 478 (to Peppers' 267). Again, this is not an apples-to-apples comparison with what Vrabel did in Tennessee versus how it will play here. It is just sharing how the previous staff(s) utilized the talent still on the Pats roster and how Vrabel utilized one of his best defensive pieces.

NEW MAN IN THE MIDDLE

In other news, the Pats added a new center to their roster, signing Garrett Bradbury to a two-year deal worth $12 million, $3.8 million of it guaranteed.

Bradbury was Minnesota's' 2019 first-round pick. He spent the first six seasons of his career with the Vikings, starting 88 regular-season games, including all 17 this past year, but failed to live up to his draft standing as the 18th overall pick. The team actively sought a replacement this off-season and found one, inking former Colt Ryan Kelly.

Undersized at 6'3", 300 pounds, Bradbury is an athletic mover who does his best work in the wide zone. However, because of his lack of size and poor reach (his arms are 31 1/4), he tends to get overpowered not only at the point of attack in the run game but also needs help from guards against bigger interior defensive linemen (think Quinnen Williams). 

Bradbury is tasked with filling the role held by David Andrews for a number of years. Andrews was released Thursday with an injury designation.