The Patriots are adding another familiar face to their defensive front, and this one comes with a clear purpose after New England got knocked around against the run in Week 1.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the team has agreed to a one-year deal with defensive tackle DaQuan Jones. The contract is worth a base of $3.5 million this season and can climb to $6 million.
Jones, 34, entered the league as a fourth-round pick of the Tennessee Titans in 2014. He spent seven seasons in Tennessee, including the final three under now-Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, and was a steady contributor there with 99 games played and 235 combined tackles.
After leaving the Titans, Jones spent 2021 with the Carolina Panthers and then moved on to the Buffalo Bills, where he played from 2022 through 2025. He stayed on the market after last season, and the Patriots had already brought him in for a summer visit.
In Buffalo last year, Jones was on the field for just over 49% of the defensive snaps. That usage dipped a year later, when he finished with 22 tackles and three sacks. Over the course of his career, he has totaled 20 sacks and 34 tackles for loss.
He has had some injury issues over the years, but he has started every game of his NFL career. That durability matters for a Patriots front that was gashed in the middle against Seattle, with the Seahawks running for 97 yards on Wednesday and rookie Jadarian Price accounting for 52 of them. New England clearly wants more heft and more familiarity in that spot, and Jones gives them both.
The move also keeps the Vrabel-to-New England pipeline humming. Jones becomes the ninth player from that Tennessee connection to land with the Patriots since Vrabel was hired, joining A.J.
Brown, Kevin Byard, Harold Landry and Kindle Vildor on this year’s roster. Jack Gibbens signed last year and left in free agency, Caleb Murphy was released last season, Monty Rice was released this summer and Andrew Rupupich was placed on IR during the preseason.
Up front, the Patriots opened last week with Milton Williams and Cory Durden as their starters, with Christian Barmore rotating in. Williams played 33 snaps, Barmore 30 and Durden 28, and each had moments, but the overall performance on the line never fully took over the game.
New England also has Leonard Taylor III and Joshua Farmer on the active roster, with Eric Gregory and Jeremiah Pharms Jr. on the practice squad.
Jones should fit as another body who can line up next to Durden as a nose tackle-type presence. Durden has been filling that role after the departure of Khyiris Tonga, but he’s not as big as what teams usually want from a true run stuffer in the middle.
If Jones is going to get into the lineup right away, his first chance will come next week against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots will need to clear a roster spot to make it happen.
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