The New England Patriots invested three draft picks in their linebacker corps last year, but the group as a whole still struggled following the offseason departures of Dont’a Hightower, Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins and Elandon Roberts. Be it on the edge or off the ball, New England was unable to field consistent contributors — an eventually fatal flaw in combination with the issues along the interior defensive line.
While Hightower’s expected return off the Coronavirus opt-out list as well as the development of second-year players Josh Uche and Anfernee Jennings should all help the group, further reinforcements might be needed to return it to a strength of the defense as it was in 2019.