The Patriots have signed free agent safety Jordan Richards, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
New England should be quite familiar with Richards, as Bill Belichick & Co. drafted the former Stanford standout in the second round of the 2015 draft. Despite his draft pedigree, Richards never became much more than a special teams ace during his time with the Patriots, as his season-high in defensive snaps was 272 (2017).
Richards saw much more defensive action after New England traded him to Atlanta prior to the 2018 campaign in a deal that netted the Patriots a 2020 seventh-round pick. After the Falcons were decimated by injuries to their defensive unit, Richards made 12 starts and played on 42% of the club’s defensive snaps, posting 39 tackles and three passes defensed in the process.
The Patriots are well-stocked in their defensive backfield, with Devin McCourty, Patrick Chung, and Duron Harmong seeing the majority of the snaps. Richards will slot in as a special teams option alongside fellow reserves Nate Ebner and Terrence Brooks.