Patriots To Re-Sign DT Lawrence Guy

The New England Patriots are bringing back their run-stuffing defensive tackle

The New England Patriots are continuing their aggressive offseason, with the team finalizing a four-year contract for defensive lineman Lawrence Guy to remain in Foxboro, according to ESPN reporter Mike Reiss.

Free-agent DT Lawrence Guy and the Patriots are working on finalizing a four-year deal for Guy to remain in New England — pending a physical — per sources.

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) March 24, 2021

Since signing with New England during the 2017 offseason, Guy has quickly established himself as a premier run-stopping interior defensive lineman. His ability to play both vertically and stretch against various run concepts has allowed him to be a staple of the Patriots heavier personnel packages for the last four years.

The news of Guy's re-signing comes one day after he took a free agent visit with the Miami Dolphins, where he would have been reunited with former Patriots assistant coach Brian Flores.

Guy's value to the Patriots is best evidenced by his being named to the team's All-Decade Team of the 2010s alongside fellow defensive tackle Vince Wilfork.

Also on Wednesday, the Patriots signed veteran linebacker LaRon Reynolds as an unrestricted free agent.

Reynolds has played 115 games for five different teams in eight NFL season and has started seven games as more of a special teams specialist. He has played 1,886 career snaps on special teams, compared to 413 on defense.  

Along with acquiring a myriad of top free agent names, Bill Belichick has placed a lot of emphasis on bringing back veterans who embody the team culture, such as James White, David Andrews, Kyle Van Noy and, of course, Guy.

Additionally, Belichick has focused heavily on beefing up the trenches on both sides of the ball. In an era of football in which offensive and defensive personnel are getting smaller and faster, Belichick has continued to subscribe to the age-old philosophy of controlling the line of scrimmage. 

It does remains a bit of a mystery how other run-stopping interior linemen like Henry Anderson and Davon Godchaux will fit into similar run-stopping packages alongside Guy. 

However, with New England being the 26th-ranked run defense by yards allowed and the 28th-ranked defense in rushing first downs allowed, it is evident that Belichick is adamant on finding personnel groupings that can consistently stuff the run and Guy figures to be a key piece of the puzzle.

Guy has started 60 of the 62 games he has played for New England over the past four years and has 235 tackles and seven sacks during that time.