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Pats deal DE White to 49ers, Dugger to Steelers
The New England Patriots traded away two former defensive starters Tuesday night, sending defensive end Keion White to the San Francisco 49ers and safety Kyle Dugger to the Pittsburgh Steelers, sources told ESPN.
The trades occurred within minutes of each other, with the Pats sending White and a 2026 seventh-round pick to the Niners in exchange for a 2026 sixth-round pick, and sending Dugger and a seventh-round pick to the Steelers for a sixth-round pick, sources said.
White's addition comes at a critical time for the Niners, who have seen their group of defensive ends dwindle by the week because of injuries. The biggest loss came in Week 3 when star end Nick Bosa was lost for the season with a torn right anterior cruciate ligament.
The Niners left Sunday's loss to the Houston Texans with ends Bryce Huff (hamstring), Yetur Gross-Matos (hamstring) and Sam Okuayinonu (ankle) dealing with injuries that either prevented them from playing in that game or were suffered during it.
While Huff and Gross-Matos are expected back soon and Okuayinonu is day-to-day this week, the 49ers clearly needed help at the position following their struggles generating any pass rush against Houston. For the season, the Niners rank last in the NFL in pressure percentage (21.3%) and 25th in pass-rush win rate (33.8%).
In White, the Niners are taking a flier on a once-promising prospect who fell out of favor in New England as his fit in new coach Mike Vrabel's scheme wasn't as clear. He was a healthy scratch in the Patriots' win against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday and played in just 26% of the defensive snaps this season with six tackles and one pressure.
White was originally a second-round pick of New England's in the 2023 NFL draft, the final draft with Bill Belichick as head coach. He played in 16 games as a rookie, with four starts, totaling 26 tackles, one sack, five quarterback hits and three pass breakups.
When Belichick's former assistant Jerod Mayo took over as head coach in 2024, White's role expanded as he played in every game (13 starts) and amassed 56 tackles, five sacks, 16 quarterback hits, five pass breakups and two forced fumbles.
White has one year remaining on his rookie deal at a base salary of $1.812 million for 2026. Given the injuries on the roster, the Niners might not be done making trades with more help for the defensive line still a possibility as they await the returns of Huff, Gross-Matos and Okuayinonu.
Dugger, a second-round pick in 2020, started 69 games in five-plus seasons with New England, including four this season.
ESPN's Mike Reiss contributed to this report.
The New England Patriots traded away two former defensive starters Tuesday night, sending defensive end Keion White to the San Francisco 49ers and safety Kyle Dugger to the Pittsburgh Steelers, sources told ESPN.
The trades occurred within minutes of each other, with the Pats sending White and a 2026 seventh-round pick to the Niners in exchange for a 2026 sixth-round pick, and sending Dugger and a seventh-round pick to the Steelers for a sixth-round pick, sources said.
White's addition comes at a critical time for the Niners, who have seen their group of defensive ends dwindle by the week because of injuries. The biggest loss came in Week 3 when star end Nick Bosa was lost for the season with a torn right anterior cruciate ligament.
The Niners left Sunday's loss to the Houston Texans with ends Bryce Huff (hamstring), Yetur Gross-Matos (hamstring) and Sam Okuayinonu (ankle) dealing with injuries that either prevented them from playing in that game or were suffered during it.
While Huff and Gross-Matos are expected back soon and Okuayinonu is day-to-day this week, the 49ers clearly needed help at the position following their struggles generating any pass rush against Houston. For the season, the Niners rank last in the NFL in pressure percentage (21.3%) and 25th in pass-rush win rate (33.8%).
In White, the Niners are taking a flier on a once-promising prospect who fell out of favor in New England as his fit in new coach Mike Vrabel's scheme wasn't as clear. He was a healthy scratch in the Patriots' win against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday and played in just 26% of the defensive snaps this season with six tackles and one pressure.
White was originally a second-round pick of New England's in the 2023 NFL draft, the final draft with Bill Belichick as head coach. He played in 16 games as a rookie, with four starts, totaling 26 tackles, one sack, five quarterback hits and three pass breakups.
When Belichick's former assistant Jerod Mayo took over as head coach in 2024, White's role expanded as he played in every game (13 starts) and amassed 56 tackles, five sacks, 16 quarterback hits, five pass breakups and two forced fumbles.
White has one year remaining on his rookie deal at a base salary of $1.812 million for 2026. Given the injuries on the roster, the Niners might not be done making trades with more help for the defensive line still a possibility as they await the returns of Huff, Gross-Matos and Okuayinonu.
Dugger, a second-round pick in 2020, started 69 games in five-plus seasons with New England, including four this season.
ESPN's Mike Reiss contributed to this report.
