As the New England Patriots went through their draft preparation ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft, Penn State safety Jaylen Reed came across their radar.
The safety ended up coming off the board 187th overall in the sixth round to the Houston Texans. But the Patriots continued to monitor him.
“We followed his career last year with Houston,” executive vice president of player personal Eliot Wolf said Tuesday. “When we determined that he might be available, he was someone that we wanted to acquire.”
The Patriots did just that on Monday, trading wide receiver Kayshon Boutte to the Texans for Reed and a 2028 seventh-round draft pick.
Reed now joins a safety room that includes Kevin Byard, Craig Woodson, Dell Pettus and John Saunders Jr. with just two weeks remaining before the season opener. His immediate role, however, remains to be determined as he works to learn New England’s defense.
“That will kind of be up to him at this point, coming in, learning the system,” Wolf said. “He’s supposed to be really smart, so we’ll see if our reports on that are true. But talking to him this morning, he’s really eager and excited to be here.”
During his rookie season with the Texans, Reed appeared in just seven regular-season games, drawing one start. He did, however, start each of Houston’s two playoff games — including a Divisional Round loss to the Patriots — something that stood out to Wolf.
“Thought it was pretty remarkable that, as a rookie who hadn’t played much during the regular season, they trusted him enough to play the majority of the playoff games,” Wolf said.
As for what kind of player New England is adding, safeties coach Scott Booker recalled watching Reed ahead of last year’s draft.
“Good player, physical player,” Booker said. “A guy that was definitely on our draft board. Obviously, we didn’t go that route. But definitely a guy that I talked to in the pre-draft situation. Like his personality and happy he’s part of us.”
Despite playing just 173 defensive snaps last season, Reed showed the ability to play the deep portion of the field, while his physicality can make him an asset closer to the line of scrimmage.
That versatility could prove valuable for a Patriots defense that has spent the offseason searching for the right fit alongside Byard and Woodson as a big nickel in three-safety packages — something that has become more common across the league as offenses play in heavier personnel. New England has cycled through several options on the backend, but have not appeared to find the right fit.
Booker and defensive coordinator Zak Kuhr were not ready to put any expectations on Reed’s fit in the defense, but his skill set provides an intriguing option in that role.
“Since we just got him, I’m not going to make any predictions of where he’s going to play and all that type of stuff,” Booker said. “We’re going to try to get him up to date on all our terminology and all of our calls as soon as possible and see where he fits in.”
Reed also saw extensive time on special teams for the Texans last season, playing 113 snaps across multiple units in the kicking game. With the Patriots losing three of their top five special teams players in terms of snaps from last season, Reed should be provided with an opportunity to assume a core role.
Upon his arrival at the facility Tuesday, Reed already pledged to Wolf that he would be more violent on special teams — which was music to special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer’s ears.
“A safety that’s violent, plays fast — every time you see one of those they can play in a lot of different spots,” Springer said. “So I’m excited for that.”
Leave a Comment