The Patriots have made their first outside free agent signing of the offseason. They’ve inked veteran cornerback Terrance Mitchell to a one-year, $3 million deal, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Mitchell, 29, is a veteran of seven NFL seasons with the Bears, Cowboys, Chiefs, Browns and Texans. A 2014 seventh-round pick, he’s played in 83 games, starting 51 of them, while coming down with eight interceptions and 59 pass defenses.
He played in Houston last season, where he played in 14 games and recorded one interception, 10 pass defenses and 60 total tackles.
According to Pro Football Focus, Mitchell almost exclusively played on the outside last season. That indicates he could be part of Bill Belichick’s plan to replace J.C, Jackson, who reportedly agreed to terms with the Chargers earlier this week. Jackson will be paid $40 million guaranteed.
Unsurprisingly, Mitchell comes with a Patriots connection: he played under player personnel executive Eliot Wolf for two seasons in Cleveland.
Prior to Wednesday, the Patriots have solely taken care of their own veteran free agents, re-signing Devin McCourty, James White, Matthew Slater, Nick Folk and James Ferentz. They also traded Shaq Mason to the Buccaneers for a fifth-round pick, and dealt Chase Winovich to Cleveland in exchange for linebacker Mack Wilson.
Free agency officially begins Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.
