Culture and relationships.

The two main objectives for the Patriots this free agency period has been to sign guys that will immediately help change the culture in Foxborough. That’s not to say the team isn’t signing good players, they obviously are, but the familiarity the staff – Vrabel in particular – has with many of the guys is a key theme.

The latest is linebacker Jack Gibbens, who the team officially announced as its newest member in a press release on Wednesday afternoon. Gibbens is signing a one-year deal.

Gibbems is entering his fourth NFL season, having spent his first three with Tennessee. Gibbens is a Bulverde, Texas native and went to Abilene Christian.

Gibbens’ best season came in 2023 when he played in 14 games, starting in 13 of them with 55 solo tackles (3 TFL’s) and a sack. He’s got 20 starts in 29 career games with 167 total tackles (93 solo), 1.5 sacks and an interception.

While the off-field component and types of guys Vrabel is bringing in is worth paying attention to, it’s also clear that this defense will be a bit smaller, but younger and faster in many areas, particularly at linebacker where an upgrade in playing style has been desperately needed for a while now.

The team still isn’t done in free agency and will have a busy week locally next week with several Pro Days, but the initial changes to a defense that got progressively worse the last three years should provide hope to the fan base.