UPDATE (3:15 p.m. ET): Patriots linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley has agreed to terms on a two-year contract worth up to $9 million, according to a report from NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.
ORIGINAL STORY: At least one of the Patriots’ free agent linebackers is staying in New England.
Ja’Whaun Bentley is closing in on a new contract with the Patriots after testing free agency, according to a report Friday from ESPN’s Mike Reiss and Field Yates.
Bentley, a 2018 fifth-round draft pick, is coming off the best season of his NFL career, starting all but one game leading the team with a career-high 109 tackles. The 25-year-old Purdue product also posted personal bests in tackles for loss (five), quarterback hits (five) and forced fumbles (three), adding one sack and two pass breakups.
A big-bodied, run-stuffing linebacker, Bentley fits the Patriots’ traditionally preferred measurables for the position at 6-foot-2, 255 pounds. Mack Wilson, whom New England acquired via trade earlier in the week, is a smaller, more athletic option, standing 6-1, 233.
The Patriots are looking to add speed and explosiveness to their defense this offseason, but Bentley’s re-signing shows Bill Belichick still values size and physicality.
Bentley also is a respected leader within the Patriots’ locker room, serving as a team captain in 2020 while veteran Dont’a Hightower opted out of the season due to COVID-19 concerns.
“He’s definitely grown as a player both on the field and off the field,” inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo said in November. “His practice habits have tremendously improved. Not to say that he was a poor practice guy, but this guy is really taking his game to the next level. Whether we’re talking about blitzing, tackling, covering or just doing a good job overall. He’s definitely a better coverage player, not only zone but also in man-to-man coverage.”
Hightower and fellow Patriots linebackers Jamie Collins and Kyle Van Noy are unrestricted free agents who have yet to sign new deals.
The Boston Herald’s Andrew Callahan reported there has been “no progress in contract talks” between the Patriots and Collins’ camp and that he might wait weeks before signing.
