Patriots LB Carving Out Surprising Role on Defense

One of the more intriguing pieces to watch on the New England Patriots' defense following the coaching shift from Jerod Mayo to Mike Vrabel was veteran linebacker Jahlani Tavai.

Tavai, who comes fresh off his fourth year in the mix with the Patriots, had links to potentially being one of New England's many casualties from the turnover to Coach Vrabel throughout the turbulence of this offseason. We've seen no shortage of reservations from this new regime to move off of old pieces from past groups, even if it may be the longest tenured guy on the roster in long snapper Joe Cardona.

But when it comes to Tavai and his status on the Patriots roster, the veteran linebacker is seemingly putting together a solid role in New England's starting defense during the early motions of the team's offseason training.

According to ESPN insider Mike Reiss, Tavai has been lining up alongside free agent acquisition Robert Spillane in the Patriots' linebacker unit for the start of OTAs.

Tavai had a large role in the Patriots' defense last season, as he has for the past three years. During his most recent 2024 campaign, he finished with 115 total tackles, seven TFLs, five PBUs, along with an interception.

Even with the Patriots being aggressive in making this new Vrabel era of the roster tailored to his and his staff's needs, we could end up seeing Tavai stand out as one of the few exceptions to that trend. He's still only 28 years old, comes off a year with storng production, and with a positive training camp and preseason to pair with a nice summer showing, he could be in line to be a starting linebacker for the fourth straight season in Foxboro.

Needless to say, keep a keen eye on Tavai and what his future status holds on this Patriots defense heading into the 2025 season.