The Patriots are signing offensive guard Alijah Vera-Tucker to a three-year, $42 million deal worth up to $48 million, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Vera-Tucker, 26, missed all of last season after tearing his left triceps in training camp with the Jets. It was the second triceps tear for Vera-Tucker after he tore his right one in Week 7 of 2022.
He tore his Achilles’ tendon in Week 5 of 2023.
Vera-Tucker has played only 43 games, while missing 41, since the Jets drafted him in the first round in 2021.
Still, he ranks 31st on PFT’s top-100 free agents list.
Jared Wilson, a third-round pick in 2025, started at left guard as a rookie. He is moving to center to replace Garrett Bradbury, with Vera-Tucker penciled in to start at left guard.
The Jets are signing safety Dane Belton to a one-year, $4 million deal, according to Jordan Schultz of The Schultz Report. Belton has an opportunity to make another $2 million in incentives.
He joins Minkah Fitzpatrick and Malachi Moore at the position.
Belton, 25, entered the NFL as a fourth-round pick of the Giants in 2022, and he spent his first four seasons with them.
He has 240 tackles, 16 passes defensed, four sacks, four forced fumbles and six interceptions in his career.
In 2025, Belton played nine games, with one start. He totaled 120 tackles, two sacks, an interception, five pass breakups and three forced fumbles. He saw action on 705 defensive snaps and 310 on special teams.
He has played all but two games in his career and hasn’t missed a game since his rookie season.
Former NFL linebacker Darron Lee appeared in court on Monday for a preliminary hearing on charges of first-degree murder and tampering with evidence. And the case against him includes some unusual, and particularly incriminating, evidence.
Via Local 3 News, the prosecution offered testimony indicating that Lee had consulted ChatGPT on how to deal with a person who is unresponsive. The message came from Lee’s phone.
Lee also asked ChatGPT about the injuries that would be consistent with someone falling in the shower.
Body camera footage showed Lee telling a police officer that the victim, 29-year-old Gabriella Perpetuo, may have slipped and fallen in the shower but that Lee didn’t know what had happened to her. The police report in the case indicates that blood was found through the house, along with broken glass.
Authorities also said that Perpetuo had “multiple stab wounds, black eyes, bite marks, and blood coming from her nose and mouth.”
Prosecutors have not ruled out seeking the death penalty against Lee.
He was a first-round pick of the Jets in 2016. Lee also played for the Chiefs and the Bills.
In addition to the criminal prosecution, Lee faces a $50 million wrongful-death lawsuit.
The Jets are re-signing fullback Andrew Beck to a one-year, $1.5 million fully guaranteed deal, according to Jordan Schultz of The Schultz Report.
Beck, 29, played all 17 games with two starts last season, seeing action on 110 offensive snaps and 319 on special teams.
He began his career in Denver in 2019 and spent four seasons there before spending time with the Texans and Packers. Beck signed with the Jets in the 2025 offseason.
Beck has appeared in 87 games, with 24 starts.
He has totaled 40 touches for 270 yards and six touchdowns.
The Jets traded Quinnen Williams to the Cowboys during the 2025 season. They have now lost Quinnen’s brother.
Linebacker Quincy Williams has agreed to a two-year deal with a maximum value of $17 million, according to Jordan Schultz of The Schultz Report.
Williams reunites with Browns defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg, who was his linebackers coach with the Jets for four of Williams’ seasons in New York.
Williams, 29, entered the NFL as a third-round pick of the Jaguars in 2019 and spent two seasons in Jacksonville.
He joined the Jets in 2021 and played 78 games with 73 starts in his career in New York, making All-Pro in 2023.
In 2025, Williams totaled 83 tackles, 3.5 sacks and seven passes defensed in 13 games. He missed four games with a shoulder injury.
