• A fit on the Patriots defensive line: Back in the 2023 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots used the 47th overall pick on Georgia Tech defensive end Keion White, a 6-foot-5, 285-pound athletic marvel who perfectly fitted their mold for a powerful defensive lineman.
• Stepping up to the plate: White earned a 90.8 pass-rush grade in Week 1, trailing only Aidan Hutchinson, T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett.
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Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
White's journey to the NFL
Back in the 2023 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots used the 47th overall pick on Georgia Tech defensive end Keion White, a 6-foot-5, 285-pound athletic marvel who perfectly fitted their mold for a powerful defensive lineman.
White was one of the more unique prospects to come out of that year’s class. Not only was he an older prospect at 24, but he was also considered very raw, as had only two seasons of experience playing defensive line.
White started his college career as a tight end at Old Dominion in 2018, playing over 300 snaps on offense as a 235-pound redshirt freshman. He then made the switch to the defensive line before his sophomore year and immediately became a starter after bulking up to 267 pounds.
White, a former two-star recruit, took to his new position immediately. He put up an 84.8 PFF grade across 635 snaps in 2019, earning an 87.8 run-defense grade and an 83.7 pass-rush grade. He then sat out the 2020 season due to COVID before transferring to Georgia Tech ahead of the 2021 season, where he played sparingly as a junior.
White found his groove as a pass rusher during his senior year, earning more playing time as a stand-up edge rusher despite weighing nearly 300 pounds. And his rare blend of size, speed and power, combined with his ability to play multiple positions along the defensive line, made him a highly intriguing talent ahead of the draft.
A Rookie year of ups and downs
White’s preseason debut was a sight to behold, and he left Patriots fans buzzing with a very impressive performance. He made the most of his 27 snaps against the Texans, battering their offensive line to earn an 89.8 PFF grade and 81.0 pass-rush grade.
He didn’t record any sacks, but he won 20% of his pass-rush snaps and made life hell for C.J. Stroud in the quarterback's professional debut. And though he didn’t play the rest of the preseason due to an ankle injury, he certainly left a good first impression.
The regular season wasn’t as kind, as White was forced to adjust to NFL talent. Across 522 defensive snaps as a rookie, he managed a 64.1 overall grade and a 52.3 pass-rush grade.
He recorded just one sack in his rookie season, which came in Week 12 against the Giants when Tommy DeVito held the ball too long while scrambling. He totaled 21 pressures on 301 pass-rushing snaps, with nearly half coming on unblocked or cleanup plays, resulting in a 6.3% win rate — a significant drop from his dominance in college and during the preseason.
A promising start in 2024
With New England trading away Matthew Judon at the tail end of the preseason, there were many concerns about how the Patriots would generate pressure.
Josh Uche was coming off a disappointing 2023 after an apparent breakout year in 2022, and Christian Barmore was diagnosed with blood clots shortly after signing an extension. Someone needed to step up, and based on his Week 1 performance in Cincinnati, White appears primed to pick up the slack.
In the season opener, he dominated against a Bengals team with Super Bowl aspirations. Lining up primarily against former teammate Trent Brown, he converted all three of his pressures into sacks for a 14.3% win rate and a 90.8 pass-rush grade on 28 snaps.
White could have had even more, as well, as on a few occasions the ball was released so quickly that he didn’t have time to make a play on the quarterback.
White’s 90.8 pass-rush grade trailed only Aidan Hutchinson, T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett on Sunday. As inexperienced as he is as a pass rusher, performances like this suggest that White may just be scratching the surface, which could make the Patriots intriguing down the road.
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