FOXBOROUGH — A bit early for his own press conference, Keion White sat among reporters in the front row of the Patriots team auditorium and listened to the end of Jacoby Brissett’s session.
When it was White’s turn to step behind the lectern following Sunday’s 23-20 overtime loss to the Seahawks, the second-year defensive lineman wanted to make something clear.
“First and foremost, I know y’all just had Jacoby on: The offense did what they needed to do for us to win today,” White said. “I feel like as a defense, we need to play better. Me included. The D-line, DBs, linebackers, everybody. So we need to go to the drawing board, watch the film, and go see how we can improve. It’s a short week (ahead of Thursday Night Football) and that’s what it’s all about, making the corrections.”
It was another sign of growth for the 2023 second-rounder, who is blossoming into one of the most impressive players on the Patriots roster. Quiet as a rookie, White isn’t afraid to speak for the entire defense now — and to demand more of them. It’s encouraging to see his leadership grow as his play gets even better, too.
For the second week in a row, White was an absolute menace in the trenches. He finished with an eye-opening nine pressures against the Seahawks — five more than anyone else on the defense — and picked up 1.5 sacks and a pair of hits on Geno Smith. While the loss was discouraging, White’s afternoon wasn’t.
“He has been dominant,” said veteran Jonathan Jones, who has suited up alongside some legendary Patriots. “He was after them all (afternoon). That makes our job easier on the back end when we have a guy like that up front rushing.”
Stout enough to play the run on the interior defensive line and quick enough to wreak havoc up the middle on passing downs, he gives the Patriots a real cause for optimism. There’s nothing one-dimensional about White’s game and no reason to believe it won’t continue to improve. A converted college tight end, this is just his fifth year playing defensive line and his second at the NFL level.
“We are all seeing the same thing,” captain Deatrich Wise said. “He is showing a lot of versatility. He is able to sit there and get on the run game, get pressure outside, able to come inside and get pressure, able to run games, he is doing a great job with that. He can set up rushes and communicate very well so we are all seeing the same thing from last year to this year and he is becoming just an overall great player.”
White’s growth has been massive since entering the league and his development as a leader has been steady too. Jerod Mayo tabbed him as the player he’d been most impressed with in the spring, and White did everything he could to validate that when training camp got rolling. During one-on-one pass rush drills in the dog days of August, he sought out Mike Onwenu because he wanted to sharpen his skills against the best offensive lineman on the roster. He wouldn’t use a bull rush — his best move — to increase the degree of difficulty.
All of that is translating on Sundays now.
White’s play has been bright spot this season, even in Sunday’s disappointing loss. And his demanding comments afterward indicate there could be more on the way.
