K'Lavon Chiasson
Getty
New England Patriots edge rusher K'Lavon Chiasson scoops a fumble and scores a touchdown against the Tennessee Tits during a, October 19, 2025 game.
NFL free agency is almost here! And all 32 NFL teams across the league will have the luxury of bidding with one another to acquire players of need starting on Wednesday. For the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, this free agency period is centered around the decision of Mike Evans, but Tampa Bay still needs a lot of help on the defensive side of the ball.
GM Jason Licht has several internal decisions to make, including a potential 17 unrestricted free agents. Perhaps the biggest position of need for the Buccaneers is an edge rusher. In a recent piece by Buccaneers.com writer Steve Smith, K’Lavon Chaisson is the top player (below a projected $10 million AAV) that the team should target.
Buccaneers Urged to Sign Former Patriots Edge K’Lavon Chaisson
K'Lavon Chiasson
GettyNew England Patriots edge rusher K’Lavon Chiasson scoops a fumble and scores a touchdown against the Tennessee Tits during a, October 19, 2025 game.
K’Lavon Chaisson is a former first-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars back in 2020, but he never took off as they had hoped, so the Jags released him, and he went on to sign a one-year deal with the New England Patriots before the 2025 season. After starting the season on the practice squad, Chaisson eventually got his opportunity and absolutely made the most of it.
Here is why Steve Smith believes he could be a good fit for this Bucs pass rush:
“While playing just 52% of the snaps for the Raiders in 2024, he produced 5.0 sacks, two passes defensed and a forced fumble. He was even better in a somewhat larger role for the AFC Champion Patriots last year, playing 67% of the snaps and finishing with 7.5 sacks, 18 quarterback hits, two passes defensed and two forced fumbles in 16 outings.According to NFL Next Gen Stats, he also had 52 quarterback pressures and a fine pressure rate of 14.2%.”
Other names on the list of six free agents that Smith names include Devin Bush, Isiah Likely, DL John-Franklin Myers, Tyler Allgeier, and Chidobe Awuzie—all players who would potentially have a cap hit of less than $10 million.
What is K’Lavon Chaisson’s Value?
According to Spotrac, K’Lavon Chaisson is projected to earn a three-year, $ 26.8 million contract, which comes to about $9 million per season.
It might be a little bit of a hefty price tag for Chaisson, who really only has two *good* NFL seasons on his resume. However, the Buccaneers do desperately need more edge rush help aside from YaYa Diaby. Diaby led the Buccaneers with 7.5 sacks last season, but no other player on the roster had more than three.
Chaisson will be 27 years old when the 2026 season rolls around, but you have to think he’s still a player with aspirations to be great due to his first-round “bust” status with the Jaguars.
While the Buccaneers will primarily focus is retaining internal players, NFL free agency is a strong opportunity to add talent, such as Chaisson, to the Tampa Bay defense in 2026.