New England Patriots
Kevin Byard has recorded 36 interceptions over his 10-year NFL career.
The New England Patriots are reportedly adding a veteran leader to their secondary.
Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Patriots are signing veteran safety Kevin Byard to a one-year, $9 million deal.
Byard will turn 33 before the start of the 2026 season. But there’s still plenty of tread left on those tires, given that the hard-hitting safety is coming off a 2025 campaign with the Bears where he earned both Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro honors.
Here are four things to know about New England’s latest addition to its defensive unit.
He’s a ball hawk
The Patriots’ defense was an impressive unit during the 2025 season, ranking fourth in the league with just 18.8 points allowed per game. They were also just one of 13 NFL teams that had a positive turnover differential this past year — but only at plus-3 on the season.
If New England is trying to ramp up those turnover totals in 2026, bringing in a safety like Byard makes plenty of sense.
Byard played a key role in the Bears’ absurd plus-22 turnover differential last season — tops in the league and five more than the second-place Texans. The veteran led the NFL with seven interceptions on the season, serving as a thorn in the side of opposing QBs throughout the fall.
He was more than just a turnover machine last season, closing out the year with 93 combined tackles (61 solo), eight pass deflections, and four tackles for a loss.
His seven picks were also far from an outlier. He has 36 total interceptions over his 10 seasons in the NFL — also leading the league in interceptions (eight) during the 2017 season in Tennessee.
In total, he has three First Team All-Pro nods in his career — earning the honor in 2017, 2021, and 2025.
He has plenty of familiarity with Mike Vrabel
It should come as little surprise that Byard had an interest in signing with New England, beyond the team’s success in 2025.
He has a history with Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, as he played for Vrabel from 2018-23 during their time together with the Titans.
Byard established himself as one of the premier safeties in the league under Vrabel’s watch, with the former 2016 third-round pick out of Middle Tennessee State University going from a promising rookie to an All-Pro talent during Vrabel’s first year at the helm.
Speaking last summer about Patriots veteran Hunter Henry, Vrabel compared him to Byard in terms of his poise – both on and off the field.
“Very similar to Kevin Byard. “I’m not big on comparisons, just talking about personalities,” Vrabel said in July 2025. “Kevin was really confident and comfortable. He never looked stressed. You would look and see some younger players maybe at the same position and they’d be sweating before the play would start.”
“They were making checks and everything else and running,” he added. “And Kevin just always had a very calm, confident demeanor and was an excellent player for us. I feel the same about Hunter.”
In January 2025, Byard also had plenty of praise for Vrabel.
“Definitely one of my all-time favorite coaches. Probably the smartest football mind I’ve been around,” Byard told CHGO Sports.
He hasn’t missed a game in his NFL career
Given both his age and the hard-hitting nature of his role on defense, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise if Byard had to miss the occasional game or two over the course of his decade-long career.
But the veteran has actually been one of the most durable players in the league over the years — not missing a single game due to injury across his 10 seasons with the Titans, Eagles, and Bears.
He has played through his fair share of injuries along the way. During the 2017 season, he played nine games with a sprained AC joint. Six years later, he played the final four games of the 2023 season with a torn labrum.
“I don’t get it with some guys around the league,” Byard told The Athletic’s Dan Wiederer of staying on the field. “You worked your ass off through high school to make it in college. You worked your ass off in college to open the doors to the league. Now, shouldn’t you be going 1,000 times harder to make this last? This is the time to mash the gas.”
Even at 32 years old, Byard played in 99.8 percent of Chicago’s defensive snaps during the 2025 season.
He was a legend at Middle Tennessee State
The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders might compete in the FBS division of college football as a member of Conference USA.
But it was a testament to the resume that Byard compiled during his tenure in Murfreesboro, Tennessee that he still managed to get selected with the first pick in the third round (No. 63 overall) in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Byard stuffed the stat sheet during his time with the Blue Raiders, recording 318 combined tackles, 19 interceptions (four returned for touchdowns), three forced fumbles, and 15 pass deflections.
For his efforts, Byard had his No. 20 jersey retired by Middle Tennessee in 2022 — becoming just the second player in school history to receive that honor.
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