Patriots ‘Athletic Marvel’ Hit With NFL Drug Test After Week 1 Breakout

Getty Patriots DE Keion White

One of the overlooked aspects of the Patriots unexpected but convincing—defensively, at least—win over the Bengals on Sunday in Week 1 was that the team might well have a breakout star on its hands. No, it’s not running back Rhamondre Stevenson or tight end Austin Hooper. It’s edge rusher Keion White, the 2023 second-rounder who racked up 2.5 sacks and forced a fumble to show the team can still pressure the quarterback even with Matthew Judon gone.

White earned an overall defensive grade of 90.3 from Pro Football Focus in Week 1, ranking him No. 7 among 103 qualifying edge rushers in the NFL.

A performance like that, coming off a season in which he had just one sack in 16 games, will always catch the eye of the league office. And thus, after Sunday’s game, White was given the equivalent of a game ball from the NFL—he was hit with a “random” drug test.

In his Instagram story, White posted a photo of the letter from the league telling him, “You have been selected by the NFL drug-testing program’s Independent Administrator to complete a performance enhancing substances test today.”

White captioned the photo: “The boys got me on my day off.”

https://twitter.com/SavageSports_/status/1833179514186113077

Patriots Traded Matthew Judon Last Month

It was an encouraging sign for the Patriots, who have a strong back end of the defense, but who are littered with questions up front thanks to the preseason trade of Judon to the Falcons for a third-round pick. The situation with 2023 Patriots sack leader Christian Barmore, who was diagnosed with blood clots and whose return remains cloudy, has only added questions to the group up front.

But White has been gearing up for a breakout year after getting a taste of experience last season, when he played 49% of the team’s defensive snaps, or 521 in total. He was also active on special teams, playing 31% of the Patriots’ snaps there.

White was on the field for 80% of the defensive snaps in Week 1.

Back in May, when new coach Jerod Mayo was still getting a read on his team, he singled out White as one player who stood out early.

“Look,” he said, “Keion White is doing a good job for us and I’d say also, Keion has kind of taken that step forward as far as being a leader. Not as much vocally, but you see him actually leading the groups and working well, so if you need a name, that is a good one.”

Keion White Began as an OL

White’s journey to potential NFL stardom—if, indeed, he keeps up his current level of play—will go down as an especially interesting one. He was not a top prospect coming out of high school, and began his career as a college offensive lineman for Old Dominion. It was not until he transferred to Georgia Tech and played defensive line that he began to garner attention as an NFL prospect.

He had roller-coaster rookie season, but his ability as a leader was one reason the Patriots felt OK about trading away Judon. (Of course, Judon’s contract was another.)

At Pro Football Focus, it was noted that, “Back in the 2023 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots used the 47th overall pick on Georgia Tech defensive end Keion White, a 6-foot-5, 285-pound athletic marvel who perfectly fitted their mold for a powerful defensive lineman. White was one of the more unique prospects to come out of that year’s class.”

After his struggles last year, it’s good to see White cashing in on his uniqueness thus far in 2024.