The New England Patriots have already been linked to this Philadelphia Eagles rising star in NFL free agency.

While most of the New England Patriots’ needs heading into the offseason will be on the offensive side of the ball, they could also use some help defensively.

The Patriots’ defense has slipped considerably in 2024, ranking 20th in both yardage and points allowed. Clearly, New England could use some assistance.

Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine has already identified a potential fix for the Pats in free agency, naming Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams as a possible target for the squad.

“[Christian Barmore’s] return should elevate the entire [defensive line unit], but they still need more talent to come alongside him,” Ballentine wrote. “Milton Williams will be one of the best interior defenders on the market and his age (25) should make him a popular target.”

Williams has been very impressive for the Eagles this season, having logged 16 tackles, five sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in 12 games.

The Louisiana Tech product was selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Williams instantly forged a significant role during his rookie campaign, appearing in every contests and registering 30 tackles and a couple of sacks. He followed that up by posting 36 stops and four sacks in Year 2, and last season, he totaled 42 tackles and a half of a sack.

The Patriots could absolutely use an interior pass rusher like Williams, especially after trading away both Matthew Judon and Josh Uche.

New England has amassed just 27 sacks all season long, so adding Williams into the mix would definitely help the Pats more effectively get to opposing quarterbacks.

The Patriots have a lot of cap space to play with, so they can sign Williams and still have plenty of room to continue addressing the defense.