The New England Patriots had quite the year under head coach Mike Vrabel this past season, reaching the Super Bowl behind a transformed defense and star second-year quarterback Drake Maye.
While they fell short of their pursuit of another Lombardi Trophy, it was a strong year to build upon for Vrabel, who quickly established New England into a contender.
Looking back at last offseason, the Patriots made a number of key moves after hiring a new coaching staff. On defense, they signed Milton Williams to a four-year deal, took a flier on K’Lavon Chaisson, added Khyiris Tonga, and brought in Harold Landry and Cory Durden up front.
All of those additions made former players expendable, including defensive tackle Davon Godchaux. Godchaux, who was signed to a two-year extension the year before, was shipped to the the New Orleans Saints in March 2025. With the 2026 draft now complete, we know the final results of that move.
Original terms of the Davon Godchaux trade from the Patriots
Having signed a two-year, $18 million deal the previous summer, Godchaux was about to count $8.33 million against the Patriots’ salary cap. While a significant part of it was his signing bonus proration, which would have remained in New England regardless of trade or release, he was still not necessarily a cheap player — particularly considering his relative one-dimensionality and age.
As a consequence, the trade did not net the Patriots any major compensation:
- Saints receive: DT Davon Godchaux
- Patriots receive: 2026 seventh-round pick (No. 224)
While a seventh-round draft pick 13 months in the future was not a significant haul, it was still better than the alternative: the Patriots releasing Godchaux, whose fit with the new-look defense was limited, without receiving anything in return.
What did the Patriots do with the pick from the Davon Godchaux trade?
New England ended up trading the seventh-round pick it got back in the Godchaux trade alongside safety Kyle Dugger a few months later. Offloading yet another former starter that didn’t fit the defense, the Patriots received a 2026 sixth-rounder from the Steelers for Dugger and the seventh-rounder originally coming from the Saints.
That sixth-rounder — pick No. 202 overall — was later repurposed in a trade-up with the Chargers alongside the 63rd and 131st overall picks. This allowed the Patriots to climb to the 55th spot and add some defensive help:
- ED Gabe Jacas (via Pick No. 55)
The Steelers, meanwhile, ended up drafting safety Robert Spears-Jennings at No. 224. The Chargers used the first two picks they got back on offensive lineman Jake Slaughter (2-63) and safety Genesis Smith (4-131). The Godchaux pick at No. 202, meanwhile, was spent on guard Logan Taylor.
How did Davon Godchaux play for the Saints in 2025?
Godchaux ended up playing in 16 games for the Saints in 2025, ranking third on the team in tackles in the run game with 29. He had 16 run stops, and New Orleans ranked seventh in the NFL in yards allowed per carry.
Godchaux had a similar rotational role like he did with the Patriots, playing 42% of his new team’s defensive snaps. He again wasn’t much of a pass rusher, recording only nine pressures and a pass rush win rate of 8.8%.
Overall, he provided snaps as an early-down defender for New Orleans, but didn’t have many tackles for loss (2) and was inconsistent with the penetration in the run game up front. He’ll be on the final year of his deal in 2026, as the contract is set to void on March 12, 2027.
How did the Patriots fare in the Davon Godchaux trade?
Overall, this was a deal that made sense for the Patriots, whose new defensive style didn’t fit well with Godchaux. Instead, they got much more valuable contributors out of the aforementioned Milton Williams, Khyiris Tonga and Cory Durden as well as returning starter Christian Barmore.
They got a seventh-round pick in the deal, so the return wasn’t much, but it made sense to move off the veteran defensive tackle to get his salary off the books from 2026 on.
