Patriots Acquire $29 Million Blocker Before Free Agency

The New England Patriots are serious about rebuilding their roster. They have made a few major moves and got rid of players who don’t fit in Jerod Mayo’s scheme. He is now the head coach for the team and his willingness to improve the whole energy brought joy to Patriots fans. According to recent reports, the Patriots made a move to sign a talented blocker.

Ian Rapoport from NFL Network reported that the Patriots agreed to sign former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Chukwuma Okorafor on Thursday. He was the first to report the new addition, but didn’t provide any contract details.

The #Patriots & T Chukwuma Okorafor have agreed to terms on a deal #NFL #ForeverNE pic.twitter.com/CKzv1UW0f2

— The Al Report (@TheAlReport1) March 7, 2024

Okorafor measures at 6’6’’ and 320 pounds. The Steelers selected him in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of Western Michigan. Okorafor made first team All-American on two occasions. He had a three-year deal with the Steelers from 2022 to 2024 worth $29.25 million.

Patriots sign durable blocker

The Steelers gave Okorafor a chance to start 59 games. He saw action in 77 games and also played in two playoff games. In four of his six seasons with the Steelers, Okorafor did 94%-100% of the offensive snap counts.

In 2023, Okorafor started 7 of 14 games and played 50% of team’s snaps. He missed some action due to injuries and coaches also benched him. This wasn’t a big concern because Okorafor was one of the most durable players on the Steelers roster in the last six seasons.

When it comes to the benching topic, Okorafor sat out the game against the Tennessee Titans in November 2023. Why did he miss the game? According to the offensive tackle, coaches decided to bench him after the comments he had made in the previous game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Chuks Onorafor says he’s healthy and the reason for todays demotion was something he said on the field during the last game pic.twitter.com/9QdnWJOfju

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) November 3, 2023

The Patriots are acquiring a highly-motivated player. Okorafor decided to start playing football after watching the Super Bowl between the Steelers and Green Bay Packers in 2010. He grew up playing soccer in Nigeria and this was a brand new opportunity for him.