Joshua Uche drops truth on taking less money to stay with Patriots

There will be opportunities for Uche to make up some of difference between what he ended up getting from the Patriots and the other top offer he received. His contract with New England has bonuses that run up the total value to $8 million. The biggest thing though is that if he has a strong enough season in 2024, he’ll be hitting the open market again as a 26-year-0ld.

Uche seemed to understand that he’ll have the opportunity to make more money next offseason if he has a strong enough year in 2024. But ultimately, he wants to still play with the Patriots beyond this upcoming campaign.

“A lot of people focus on the financial parts of the decision, but I feel like the team that gave me an opportunity, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be,” Uche said. “I can’t envision myself playing for another team. However that shakes out, I just know at the end of the day, the ball was in my court, and this is the dream that I want to fulfill – to be a Patriot.”

How Jerod Mayo helped influence Joshua Uche’s decision to remain with Patriots

While there were some concerns about the Patriots’ ability to retain or sign free agents after their decision to part ways with Bill Belichick, that didn’t come into play with Uche. In fact, the edge rusher wanted to remain in New England because of newly promoted head coach Jerod Mayo and defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington.

Uche got to work alongside both over the first four years of his career, with Mayo serving as the linebackers coach and Covington serving as the defensive line coach in recent seasons. He admitted that the increased presence of Mayo and Covington “played a huge role” in his decision to stay.

“They were patient enough to bear with me and kind of allow me to develop and grow,” Uche said of Mayo and Covington. “Just the familiarity that we have with each other. The trust we have with each other that we built over these four years, it’s a large reason why I don’t want to go anywhere else because they know me best. They know me better than any other coach in the league. There’s no place I’d rather be – playing for those guys.”

Uche, who the Patriots selected in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft, has had an up-and-down tenure in New England. He had a quiet rookie year and only had three sacks in his second season despite many predicting him to breakout. He had a slow start to the 2022 season before ramping it up midseason to finish with 11.5 sacks.

Last season was a step back for Uche, only posting three sacks in 15 games. He’s also donning a new name this season, going by “Joshua” instead of “Josh.” He explained that his father was the reason for the change.

“It’s the name my father gave me,” Uche said. “It’s a name I’m very proud of. I’m trying to make my Dad proud.”