Patriots’ Mike Vrabel Could Target Former Draft Pick In Free Agency originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The New England Patriots have plenty of positions to address during free agency: edge, wide receiver, offensive line, linebacker, tight end.

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It’s not going to be easy to check all of those boxes, though…

If the club intends on putting itself in a position to regularly contend, it will have to put together another near-flawless offseason — which might just mean running it back with those it has familiarity with, like Tennessee Titans tight end Chig Okonkwo.

Let’s take a look!

Bio:

Chig Okonkwo
Position: TE
Height: 6’ 3″
Weight: 238lbs
2026 Age: 27 (Sept. 8, 1999)
2025: 17 G, 56 REC, 560 REC YDS, 2 TD

The Patriots should sign Chig Okonkwo because:

If they stop caring about pre-existing relationships now, that long story we posted a few days back would be all for not…

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Okonkwo, in all seriousness, fits the organization’s timeline, as he could not only fill in as one of the short-term replacements for free agent Austin Hooper but also potentially slide in as the long-term replacement for Hunter Henry. The Patriots need to do something with regard to the position, and killing two birds with one stone might be necessary considering all the other needs left to fill.

Okonkwo, for whatever it is worth, seems to have a lot of respect for Mike Vrabel.

“He’ll tell me, he’s only going to coach me as hard as he cares,” Okonkwo said back in 2023.. “I know when he is pushing me and he is looking at every single rep I am doing, I just embrace it. He doesn’t want me to be a terrible player. He wants me to become the greatest player that I can become. So, for me, I always keep that in the back of my mind and don’t let anything he says get under my skin. I know he wants me to be great, and I know he is not doing this to make me feel bad. He just wants me to be a great player.”