The Patriots took a step back on defense last season. It’s prompted Coach Bill Belichick to focus a lot of attention – and money – on that side of the ball at the unofficial start of free agency.

A person familiar with the deal said Monday the Patriots have agreed to sign edge rusher Matt Judon to a four-year, $56 million deal – including $32 million guaranteed – for the former Baltimore Ravens standout who totaled 15 1/2 sacks in earning back-to-back Pro Bowl selections in 2019 and 2020. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been announced; new contracts can’t be finalized until the start of the new league year on Wednesday.

New England also came to terms with free-agent defensive tackle Davon Godchaux on a two-year, $16 million deal with $9 million guaranteed. Defensive back Jalen Mills also is headed to Foxborough for four years and $24 million.

“Foxborough Let’s Run It!!” Mills tweeted.

Belichick didn’t completely ignore his offense, signing former Titans tight end Jonnu Smith in his biggest move to date to fill the void created by the departure of Rob Gronkowski. Smith agreed to a four-year, $50 million deal, his agent Drew Rosenhaus confirmed to The Associated Press.

At 6-foot-3, 250 pounds, Smith has been a consistent presence for Tennessee, appearing in 60 games with 53 starts over the past four years. His improvement has been steady and he is coming off his best season with the Titans, catching 41 passes for 448 yards and eight touchdowns.

The flurry of spending is an atypical move by Belichick. He has been able to get players to sign salary cap-friendly contracts with a handful of exceptions during his tenure in New England, with the lure of joining rosters ready to compete for Super Bowl titles.

He doesn’t have that luxury this year coming off a 7-9 season. But he does have cash to work with, starting the free agency period with about $65 million in cap room.

Judon, Godchaux and Mills add some instant heft to a defense that ranked 26th in the NFL in sacks (24) and allowed opponents to score touchdowns on 65% of their red zone trips, which ranked 27th in NFL.

Godchaux has spent all four of his NFL seasons in Miami, including the past two under head coach and former New England assistant Brian Flores. He was mostly a backup for the Dolphins appearing in all 16 games in 2018 and 2019. But he accounted for 123 tackles and three sacks over that span. He played in only five games last season before going on injured reserve with a shoulder injury.

If healthy, Judon would be in line for a big role in his sixth season. His skillset could be a nice complement on the outside of linebacker Dont’a Hightower, who is returning to the field this season after opting out in 2020 because of COVID-19 concerns following the birth of his first child.

Mills also fits in nicely to an already stout secondary, which already includes cornerback Stephon Gilmore and safeties Devon McCourty and Patrick Chung. Mills comes from Philadelphia, where he spent four of his first five seasons at cornerback. He moved to strong safety in 2020, starting 15 games and producing and interception and 1 1/2 sacks.

RAIDERS: The Raiders agreed to terms with defensive end Yannick Ngakoue.

Ngakoue, regarded as one of the top pass rushers available, had eight sacks last season for the Baltimore Ravens and Minnesota Vikings. A veteran of 78 games and 70 starts since 2016, Ngakoue played four seasons for the Jacksonville Jaguars before being traded to Minnesota last season. A third-round pick out of Maryland in 2016, Ngakoue doesn’t turn 26 until next month.

CHIEFS: The cash-strapped Kansas City Chiefs made their first big first move to rebuild their offensive line, agreeing with Joe Thuney on a five-year contract to provide a durable plug-and-play option at one of their interior positions.

The agent for the former Patriots standout, Mike McCartney, tweeted the sides had agreed to the deal on the first day they could discuss contracts with free agents. The deal is worth $80 million and includes some incentives, a person familiar with the terms told The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the deal has not been signed.

Thuney, 28, was among the most coveted offensive linemen on the open market. He was a third-round pick of New England in the 2016 draft, and he has started all 80 games over his first five seasons in the league.

The Chiefs were more than more than $20 million over the salary cap a few weeks ago, but they wiped out most of it when they released left tackle Eric Fisher and right tackle Mitchell Schwartz. Fisher is recovering from surgery on a torn Achilles tendon and Schwartz from a back procedure, and there was no guarantee either would be available for training camp.

RAVENS: Guard Kevin Zeitler has agreed to a three-year, $22 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens.

The nine-year veteran was released by the New York Giants last week. Zeitler was scheduled to make $12 million, with a salary-cap hit of $14.2 million in 2021 for New York.

Zeitler, who just turned 31, has played in 135 games with 134 starts for Cincinnati (2012-17), Cleveland (2017-18) and the Giants (2019-20). He also started four playoff games with the Bengals.

The durable guard has started all 16 games in six of his NFL seasons, including five of the past six. He had started 85 straight games before missing a start Dec. 15, 2019, with an ankle injury.

CARDINALS: Arizona re-signed linebacker Markus Golden to a two-year deal.

The 30-year-old Golden has spent most of his career with the Cardinals after being selected by them in the second round of the 2015 draft. He played with Arizona from 2015-18 before signing with the New York Giants and was then traded back to the Cardinals midway through the 2020 season.

BUCCANEERS: Linebacker Shaquil Barrett and tight end Rob Gronkowski, who came out of retirement 11 months ago to help Tom Brady win No. 7 in his first season with the Bucs, are the latest players to agree to terms to stay with the team.

Agent Drew Rosenhaus represents both players and confirmed the deals to The Associated Press.

Barrett agreed to a four-year, $72 million contract. Gronkowski will return for his 11th season with Brady on a one-year, $10 million deal – up from the $9.25 million he earned after arriving in Tampa Bay from the New England Patriots in a trade last April.

Barrett has been one of the NFL’s top pass rushers over the past two seasons and earned $15.8 million in 2020, when he played under the franchise tag after leading the league with 19 sacks in 2019.

49ERS: San Francisco is bringing back cornerback Jason Verrett on a one-year deal.

General Manager John Lynch announced the deal on Twittershortly after Verrett was allowed to begin talking to other teams about a potential deal. NFL Network reported the contract has a $5.5 million base value with the chance to make more.

BRONCOS: Defensive end Shelby Harris agreed to a three-year, $27 million deal to stay in Denver.

Harris played on a one-year deal last year after finding no suitors in free agency despite setting personal highs with 49 tackles, six sacks and nine passes defensed in 2019.

JETS: The New York Jets and former Detroit Lions linebacker Jarrad Davis have agreed on a one-year deal, according to a person with direct knowledge of the move.

NFL Network first reported the deal, saying it is worth up to $7 million.

Davis was a first-round pick of the Lions in 2017 out of Florida and he started 45 of 55 games in Detroit. He had 289 total tackles, 10 1/2 sacks, seven forced fumbles, nine passes defensed and an interception while primarily playing middle linebacker for the the Lions.

JAGUARS: The Jacksonville Jaguars and former Chicago Bears defensive lineman Roy Robertson-Harris agreed on a three-year, $24.4 million deal that includes $14 million guaranteed, a person familiar with negotiations said.

The 6-foot-5, 292-pound Robertson-Harris is expected to be a 3-4 defensive end in new coordinator Joe Cullen’s scheme. Coach Urban Meyer made it clear last week that the team’s defensive makeover would start along the D-line.

BROWNS: As the market for top-tier edge rushers shrunk early in NFL free agency, the Cleveland Browns agreed to terms with safety John Johnson III, a person familiar with the negotiations told the Associated Press.

Johnson spent the past four seasons with the Los Angeles Rams.

NFL Network reported Johnson’s deal is for three years and $33.75 million, with $24 million guaranteed.

CHARGERS: The Los Angeles Chargers are taking a huge step toward upgrading their offensive line, agreeing to terms on a five-year contract with All-Pro center Corey Linsley, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.

NFL Network reported Linsley will become the highest-paid center in the league at $62.5 million. Los Angeles has also agreed to re-sign cornerback Michael Davis for three years.

PANTHERS:  The Carolina Panthers addressed their offensive line, agreeing to terms with free-agent offensive linemen Pat Elflein and Cameron Erving, according to people familiar with the situation.

Elflein received a three-year, $13.5 million deal with $6 million guaranteed, and Erving agreed to a two-year, $10 million contract with $8 million guaranteed.

Elflein, a guard, has started 49 games over the past four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and New York Jets. Erving, who has played mostly at offensive tackle, has started 47 games over six seasons, most recently with the Dallas Cowboys.

DOLPHINS: Linebacker Vince Biegel agreed to terms on a one-year contract to remain with the Miami Dolphins.

They also reached an agreement on a three-year deal with tight end Cethan Carter, who played in 46 games in three seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, mostly on special teams.

TITANS: The Tennessee Titans looked to improve their anemic pass rush with their first two free-agent deals, agreeing to terms with linebacker Bud Dupree and defensive lineman Denico Autry, according to a person familiar with the situation.

The Titans also agreed to terms with offensive tackle Kendall Lamm, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The Titans had only 19 sacks in 2020 after averaging just one per game through the first 15 games of the season. Tennessee spent more than $21 million on Vic Beasley and Jadeveon Clowney last year, a duo that played a combined 13 games without getting a single sack.

The 6-foot-4, 269 Dupree has 39 1/2 career sacks, and he had eight in 11 games last season for Pittsburgh before an injured right knee ended his season.  Autry has 30 1/2 career sacks and had 7 1/2 sacks in 14 games last season for Indianapolis.

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