When teams invest heavily in free agency, it’s often challenging for the player signed to live up to a lucrative contract with his new team.

The now highly-paid player is changing cities, changing schemes and often leaving places where other talented players helped make the team successful. As a result, building a roster through free agency can be hit or miss, which is why teams prioritize drafting and developing their own talent.

Although the Patriots also want to draft-and-develop, it appears New England hit a home run by signing DT Milton Williams last March. The Pats made a splash on the first day of free agency by out-bidding other teams, such as the Carolina Panthers, for Williams’s services. The 26-year-old was coming off a breakout season where he helped the Philadelphia Eagles win a Super Bowl. Due to Philly’s depth on the defensive line, Williams was the rare blue-chip talent to hit the open market, so the Patriots pounced.

By landing the game-wrecker in free agency, the Patriots paired Williams with stud DT Christian Barmore, who signed a four-year contract extension with the club last offseason. Barmore and Williams are already forming one of the league’s best interior duos, with the Pats DTs ranking in the top six in pressure rate through the first four weeks of the season.

According to NextGen Stats, Barmore leads all defensive tackles with a 16.1% pressure rate, while Williams is fifth in pressure percentage (13.5%). The duo also ranks in the top-11 among interior rushers in ESPN’s pass-rush win rate, with Barmore ranking second behind only Titans DT Jeffrey Simmons in that metric at a 19.2% win rate. As a defense, the Patriots rank in the top-10 in both pass-rush (10th) and run-stop (fifth) win rate, with Barmore and Williams becoming one of the NFL’s most disruptive tandems to anchor the Patriots defensive line.

“It’s been good. We’ve been talking since I got here about teams ain’t gonna be able to just key in on one of us,” Williams told Patriots.com. “You key in on one of us, and leave the other one-on-one, we like our chances. We invite that matchup, no matter who we are going against every week. They slide to me. You single? Win. They slide to him. I’m single? Win. That’s the only message week in and week out. Trying to affect the game that way.”

“Man, that’s my dog. We always say you have to choose one. I love rushing with him,” Barmore said of Williams.

As Williams said, teams have to pick their poison with the Patriots DT duo. In pass protection, the offensive line usually has a three-man slide side and a man-to-man side against a standard four-man rush. That leaves three blockers to two rushers on one side, while the other is one-on-one against the two pass-rushers.

During the opening two weeks, Barmore was double-teamed on 54.4% of his rushes, the sixth-highest double-team rate among defensive tackles. Since Week 3, more of the double teams are going to Williams, with his double-team rate increasing to 50 percent (13th among DTs). With the Panthers double-teaming Williams 10 times last week, Barmore logged a season-high five total pressures with two quarterback hits on Carolina QB Bryce Young.

“Y’all gonna leave Christian Barmore one-on-one, I like those chances, and we came out with a win,” Williams said. “Like I said, they have to pick. They gonna double him, leave me one-on-one, I really like those chances. It’s really just pick how you want to do it.

Here’s one example: the Panthers ran a play-action concept where Williams drew the double team, creating a one-on-one matchup for Barmore rushing over the right guard. Barmore converts speed-to-power to walk the right guard back into the quarterback on an effective bull rush, moving Young off his spot in the pocket and forcing a check-down.

“I see a disruptive player. I know he wants to be able to finish some of those plays. He’s drawn some holding penalties. I think there was another one that probably wasn’t called, hit the quarterback and got close,” head coach Mike Vrabel said of Barmore. “Causing penalties and being able to still be disruptive will help us. That’s also going to lead to him finishing some of those plays and getting some of those tackles for loss or sacks.”

There were also instances where Barmore drew the double team, freeing up Williams for a one-on-one pass rush. Above, the center slides toward Barmore to help the right guard, leaving Williams single-blocked while rushing on the left guard. Williams uses an explosive inside swim rush to beat Panthers LG Damien Lewis on an impressive move that jumps off the film. Williams’ immediate pressure forces Young into edge-rusher K’Lavon Chaisson, who cleans up for a sack.

“I saw him get beat inside a couple times on tape,” Williams said. “So, just always having a counter ready. They finally dropped back to pass. They really were trying to keep the offense out of those situations. Any opportunity I get when I’m trying to rush, I’m trying to get off the ball, and then just reacting. I feel like I could get inside, so I just tried to get inside.”

Williams then joked that he deserved credit for half a sack on the rush, but teammate K’Lavon Chaisson was given a full sack for taking down Young. Whether or not he gets credit for the sack, Chaisson is excited to keep feeding off the pressure caused by Barmore and Williams.

“I told [Williams] I’d let him celebrate in the game. But I told him, I said, I’ll take that. Appreciate it, big dog,” Chaisson laughed. “Them dudes are phenomenal. It was something I thought about when making the decision to come here in the offseason. Those two big boys in the trenches, run and pass game, they get it done.”

Along with his production in the box score, the duo also embodies a non-negotiable that is a pillar of the Patriots program. The Patriots have a sign in the team auditorium that lists their team identity. Things like ball security and ball disruption and making great decisions are on the list, but at the very top is arguably the most important part of the Patriots identity: effort and finish. During his introductory press conference, Vrabel said, “our effort and finish is going to be a contract we make with our teammates.”

The tenacious energy that Barmore and Williams play with sets a notable tone, bringing a much-needed playmaking gear to the Patriots defense. From this perspective, it was something that was missing at times from New England’s play demeanor over the last few seasons, and it’s not a small thing that two of the team’s highest-paid players are buying into setting a higher standard.

“That’s just me. I really don’t know any other way to play. I’m always trying to prove myself,” Williams said. “Prove the Patriots organization right. That they made the right choice, bringing me in here every day. Even going to practice, proving that I belong. That’s my goal every day. I get on the field, I’m trying to make plays and help the team win. So, the energy is always gonna be there. I’m always trying to figure out a way I can impact the game.”

The Patriots defense is still trying to come together in the season’s early stages. Although it ranks a respectable 10th in points allowed, New England’s defense is 28th in DVOA, a metric that adjusts for opponents and other factors that add context to a team’s efficiency. The hope is that two tandems will help the Pats defense improve throughout the course of the season: Barmore and Williams, and in the secondary, cornerbacks Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis. Last week, Gonzalez, one of the Patriots best players as a reigning second-team All-Pro, made his season debut after missing the first three games due to a hamstring injury.

With the defense now at full strength, it’s time to let the big dawgs eat on the defensive line, and Barmore and Williams are up for the challenge.