Mike Vrabel and the New England Patriots had hoped the low points of the offseason were behind them.
A.J. Brown was finally in town. The former Eagles wide receiver and his new QB Drake Maye bonded instantly, flashing nicely at the recent mandatory minicamp.
But all systems are not go for the Patriots. There is one unsigned 2026 second-round draft pick in the National Football League. He is New England's outside linebacker Gabe Jacas. The 55th overall pick out of Illinois had what Vrabel termed “a procedure” and missed the three-day minicamp.
Vrabel was not happy
“I don’t attribute it to anything other than he’s not here, and he’s not under contract at this current time,” said Vrabel. “I don’t want to say there’s a reason for it, other than that’s what it is right now.”
Jacas’ “procedure” is absolutely a red flag for a player that the Patriots moved up a handful of spots in the round to secure. It also happens to put the edge rusher behind the rest of the unit because he wasn’t in Foxborough for the camp.
Edge depth is an issue for Patriots
He is expected to impact a group on the edge that isn’t considered very deep.
With every day he does not sign his rookie deal, there is growing concern. Should the issues linger into training camp on July 24, it could hamper a unit that only managed 35 sacks in 2025.
Vrabel chose to not be bothered, at least publicly, by the rookie’s absence. Instead, he took the opportunity to call out the members of his edge-rushing room who were on the field in helmets and shells back in early June.
Coach will assess options
“That’s a good group. I’m excited about it … adding (Dre’Mont Jones), the development of (Elijah) Ponder and (Bradyn) Swinson, adding (Jesse) Luketa and some young guys,” Vrabel said. “That group has done a nice job, and we’ll continue to look at it, but we’ll have to see where we are at numbers wise when we get into training camp.”
Perhaps those words were a warning shot to Jacas for the rookie to take care of his health, to get signed, and to get to work.
We will have to wait and see – perhaps until July 24 and maybe even later.
