The New England Patriots traded up Friday night to select Illinois edge defender Gabe Jacas at No. 55 in the second round of the NFL draft.
Hundreds of miles away from Patriots headquarters, a franchise legend who knows Jacas well gave his stamp of approval.
Ex-Patriots running back and recent Illinois assistant James White texted the Herald shortly after Jacas’ selection calling him a “perfect fit.”
“Good, tough player,” White wrote. “(He) practices hard. Great vocal leader.”
Jacas helps fill a major need for the Patriots, who lost K’Lavon Chaisson, their top pass rusher, in free agency last month. Jacas stands at 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds and said he models his game after former Patriots outside linebacker Matt Judon, a four-time Pro Bowler who spent three seasons in New England. Like Judon, Jacas plays with exceptional power for the position, a strength he showcased at the scouting combine where he cranked out 30 reps on the bench press at 225 pounds.
The New England connections don’t stop there for Jacas. Illinois head coach Bret Bielema, a Patriots assistant from 2018-20, showed film of those teams during team meetings, Jacas said. He also received coaching from pass-rushing specialist Joe Kim, a former Bill Belichick assistant.
Jacas left Illinois as one of the most experienced and productive edge rushers in college football, with 41 career starts and 11 sacks last season. He was also a team captain. During the pre-draft process, Jacas met the Patriots in Foxboro, which he called his favorite visit with any team in the league. Jacas specifically highlighted the players’ buy-in and how the staff challenged him physically and mentally during his time in the facility.
“It’s my brand of football,” Jacas said Friday night.
As for his game, the 21-year-old first described himself as a disruptive player.
“Very violent, very dependable and someone who’s going to bring the energy and the juice to the team,” he said.
To land Jacas, the Patriots surrendered a fourth-round pick at No. 131 overall and a sixth-rounder at No. 202 to move up eight spots in their trade with the Chargers. The Patriots also moved up Thursday night to draft Utah offensive tackle Caleb Lomu in the first round, a deal that cost them their other fourth-round pick. Like Lomu, Jacas was thrilled to receive a call from the Patriots.
“Whenever they called me, it felt just right,” he said.
Jacas now joins fellow edge defenders Harold Landry, Dre’Mont Jones, Elijah Ponder, Bradyn Swinson and Jesse Luketa on the team’s depth chart.
