One of the New England’s most-used defenders and special teamers will not be back in 2026. Jack Gibbens, a reserve linebacker and core special teamer during the Patriots’ 2025 season, has decided to sign a two-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals.
The Cardinals announced the signing on Monday night, just five days after the Patriots opted not to offer Gibbens a restricted free agency tender. That decision initially paved the way for the 27-year-old’s departure.
An former undrafted free agent, who
spent the first three years of his career with the Titans, Gibbens joined the Patriots last offseason under similar circumstances as his move to Arizona. Tennessee had a chance to keep him as an exclusive rights free agent, but also did not use a tender.
Once in New England, Gibbens carved out a role as a core four special teamer. Appearing on all of the return and coverage units, he held a prominent role in the kicking game for much of the season and finished third on the team with 357 snaps. Gibbens furthermore was tied for fifth with 10 tackles.
In addition, he was used as a rotational backup linebacker who filled in for starter Robert Spillane during the latter parts of the regular season. In that role, Gibbens started 10 combined games, played just under half of defensive snaps on the year — 604 defensive snaps (47.0%; 11th) — and registered the fourth-most tackles on the roster (90). He also served as on-field signal caller when Spillane was unavailable.
All in all, Gibbens saw action in every one of New England’s 21 regular season and playoff contests in 2025. He now heads to Arizona with a combined 50 games on his NFL résumé.
The Patriots, meanwhile, are down to seven off-ball linebackers. Among them are the aforementioned Spillane and fellow starter Christian Elliss as well as free agency pickup K.J. Britt. The latter, who signed a one-year deal, appears to be a prime candidate to help replace Gibbens on defense and especially in the kicking game.
