As the Patriots sort through the mess that is their 2026 roster construction, one offseason decision is starting to stand out for all the wrong reasons: letting Khyiris Tonga walk.
The defensive line has been a problem all summer, and that makes the loss of Tonga look even harsher. New England watched K'Lavon Chaisson leave for the Commanders, but the bigger miss may have been its unwillingness to bring back Tonga, who ended up signing a hefty contract with the Chiefs earlier this year.
Tonga wasn’t some splashy headline grabber when he arrived last offseason, but he became one of those sneaky-important pieces that teams miss the second they’re gone. He emerged as a real force against the run, helping the Patriots hold down superstar running backs for the first half of the year. And he added value in ways few expected, occasionally lining up as an extra offensive lineman or even a fullback.
That kind of versatility made him an obvious candidate to return in 2026. Early reporting suggested money was the issue, but Boston Sports Journal’s Greg Bedard said Friday on 98.5’s Felger & Mazz that the gap was far smaller than anyone realized.
“On Khyiris Tonga, the reason why he is not [in New England], is because the Patriots would not fork over less than $500,000. A little bit less than that, like somewhere between $350,000 [and] $400,000. They would’ve kicked that in, he would’ve been here and his contract would have been probably half what he signed with the Chiefs with."
That detail changes the whole picture. We’re not talking about a massive contract standoff or a deal that blew up over millions. We’re talking about a relatively tiny difference in NFL terms, and that makes the Patriots’ choice look far worse now than it did when the move first happened.
It gets more frustrating when you factor in the way New England’s defensive front has looked during the preseason, especially against the run. Tonga would have fit right into a unit that has already shown cracks, and the Patriots still have over $31 million in cap space, which makes the decision not to bridge that gap feel even harder to explain.
Instead, Tonga is headed to Kansas City, where he’ll join a Chiefs team that figures to be one of the AFC’s biggest threats. For the Patriots, the worry is obvious: more trouble stopping the run, more damage from opposing backs, and more reasons to wonder why they let a useful, game-changing defender get away over a few hundred thousand dollars.
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