The New England Patriots came up with their most convincing win of the season Sunday, when they hosted the 3-1 Las Vegas Raiders and blew them out by a lopsided 45-17 score.
The win lifted the Patriots to 3-2 and, if the Buffalo Bills lose to the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football tonight, would put them in first place in the AFC East after winning the division last season.
On Monday, the Patriots announced an unusual move aimed at reinforcing their depth at the otherwise thin defensive end position.
The Patriots worked out Spanish-born defensive end Diego Paz Gonzalez on Monday, eyeing fresh help for an edge group depleted by injuries.
With the Patriots short on proven depth at the position, the workout poses a bigger question — can a 23-year-old who learned the game across four European leagues make it in the NFL?
Paz Gonzalez, a participant in the NFL’s International Player Pathway, piled up 40 tackles (five for a loss), 8½ sacks, four pass breakups and an interception for the Rhein Fire of the American Football League Europe this season, according to ESPN reporter Mike Reiss.
The sack total tied Vienna Vikings lineman Alejandro Fernandez for the best in the AFLE, according to the league’s official stats.
Paz Gonzalez’s Road to a Patriots Tryout
Paz Gonzalez is a Madrid-area native, listed at 6-foot-3 and 223 pounds.
He started with the Las Rosas Black Deamons in Spain and later suited up for the Seinäjoki Crocodiles in Finland. In 2024, back home with the Madrid Bravos, he worked as a reserve and finished with 13 tackles, three for loss and a sack, according to ELF writer Florian Puth.
Austria came next. When Raiders Tirol signed him for 2025, the team’s general manager made his pitch clear.
“Diego is a young and highly competitive athlete with outstanding athletic abilities,” Ulz Däuber said, as quoted by Puth.
Across roughly 30 ELF games, Paz Gonzalez collected 51 tackles, five sacks, 12 tackles for loss and a forced fumble.
Germany was the breakthrough. Paz Gonzalez first took the field in Europe at 19 with the Barcelona Dragons, but 2026 with the Rhein Fire, in the AFLE’s inaugural season, began slowly. Then something clicked. His lone interception went for a touchdown. The league named him its Most Improved Defensive Player of the Year, according to an AFLE feature on Paz Gonzalez.
Patriots Edge Depth and the NFL Foreign Player Rules
Veteran edge rusher Harold Landry III opened the season on the physically unable to perform list after offseason knee surgery, and rookie Quintayvious Hutchins later landed on injured reserve, according to Pats Pulpit.
That leaves Dre’Mont Jones, who has battled shoulder trouble, along with Elijah Ponder and Gabe Jacas to carry the edge workload. The interior has been stretched as well, with Christian Barmore dealing with a shoulder injury. Milton Williams, Cory Durden, Joshua Farmer, DaQuan Jones and Leonard Taylor III have all been in the mix.
Paz Gonzalez had not been signed as of Monday afternoon, according to Reiss’s report. His international status opens a roster path most free agents don’t have.
The league defines a qualifying international player as an athlete whose citizenship and primary residence sit outside the United States and Canada, with no more than two years of American high school experience, according to the NFL.com IPP explainer. He also must have been eligible for a prior NFL Draft.
Since 2024, every club can carry a 17th practice squad player reserved for an international athlete. Teams can elevate that player to the active roster up to three times a season.
The offseason roster exemption is gone, though. It expired at final cuts to 53 players, according to NFL Football Operations. A player can use the pathway for up to three seasons, and a season counts once he spends six games on a practice squad or an active or inactive list. Since 2017, the pathway has yielded 58 NFL contract signings through September, according to the league.
Whether New England offers Paz Gonzalez one of those spots should become clear by Tuesday.
Patriots Announce Unusual Defensive End Move After Blowout Raiders Win