Patriots player profile: Marcus Epps could be the missing piece at safety

Previewing the Patriots safety heading into his first season with the team.

Despite fielding one of the better safety groups in the NFL on paper, the New England Patriots did not get the desired results out of the position in 2024. Kyle Dugger struggled with injuries; Jabrill Peppers spent a majority of the year on the commissioner’s exempt list; Marte Mapu and Jaylinn Hawkins were role players more so than starter-caliber contributors.

While the group’s outlook for 2025 will largely depend on Dugger and Peppers rebounding, the Patriots also made sure to add some more competition to the mix. One of those additions was free agency pickup Marcus Epps.

Hard facts

Name: Marcus Epps

Position: Safety

Jersey number: 22

Opening day age: 29 (1/27/1996)

Measurements: 5’11 5/8”, 195 lbs, 29 1/2” arm length, 10” hand size, 4.55s 40-yard dash, 6.77s 3-cone drill, 4.07s short shuttle, 38 1/2” vertical jump, 10’4” broad jump, 17 bench press reps, 8.49 Relative Athletic Score

Experience

NFL: Minnesota Vikings (2019), Philadelphia Eagles(2019-22), Las Vegas Raiders (2023-24) England Patriots (2025-) | College: Wyoming (2014-18)

Epps was not ranked as a recruit out of Edison High School in Huntington Beach, CA, and joined the University of Wyoming as a walk-on in 2014. After redshirting his true freshman campaign, he developed into a starter and team captain for the Cowboys: between 2015 and 2018, he saw action in 50 games and registered nine interceptions — including one returned for a touchdown — as well as five forced fumbles, and four fumble recoveries.

His meteoric rise allowed him to hear his name called in the 2019 NFL Draft, with the Vikings selecting him 191st in the sixth round. However, his tenure in Minnesota was short-lived and he was let go by the team in November of his rookie season.

Epps was claimed off waivers by the Eagles and over the subsequent three and a half seasons steadily increased his playing time. By 2022, his final year in Philadelphia, he was one of the team’s starting safeties and on the field for 98.6 percent of defensive snaps en route to a loss in Super Bowl LVII.

Epps turned his performance as an Eagle into a two-year, $12 million contract with the Raiders. In Las Vegas, he picked up where he left off: he started 17 games in his first year and likely would have repeated the feat if not for a torn ACL suffered early in 2024. Following that season, Epps joined the Patriots on a one-year, $2.025 million deal.

The 29-year-old is coming to New England with a combined 92 regular season and playoff games on his NFL résumé.

Scouting report

Strengths: Epps is an experienced player who has shown that he can play various roles in a secondary, and was praised for his veteran leadership during his time in Las Vegas. He is a talented communicator and leader both on and off the field, and was responsible for defensive alignments in what was a young Raiders secondary. A team captain, he wore the communication device in his helmet in 2024.

On the field, Epps has quick reactionary skills and natural burst, as well as an ability to cover sideline to sideline out of one-high looks. A generally disciplined player in the backend, he reads quarterbacks well and does not overreact to play-action fakes or multi-route concepts. He also is instinctual as a run defender and offers a physical edge as well as good speed when attacking downhill. He furthermore has the change of direction skills to reverse course in backside pursuit.

Weaknesses: Questions about his knee injury aside, Epps offers a rather unassuming mix of straight-line speed and size. As a result, his number of impact plays throughout his career has been limited: he has intercepted only three passes and recovered one fumble over the course of his six-year NFL career. His lack of length also makes it harder for him to reach around receivers to be consistently competitive at the catch point.

Epps also has been up and down as a tackler. While able to put himself in the correct position, his finishing has been poor at times; he missed more than a quarter of his tackle attempts during his brief appearance in 2024.

2024 review

Stats: 3 games (3 starts) | 176 defensive snaps (15.8%) | 19 tackles, 7 missed tackles (26.9%), 2 TFLs | 13 targets, 12 catches allowed (92.3%), 133 yards

Season recap: Coming off two straight seasons of extensive playing time in both Philadelphia and Las Vegas, Epps entered his second year as a Raider in a familiar spot: as the team’s starting free safety and a player who would rarely leave the field. That was indeed the case over the first three games of 2024.

Epps played all 122 defensive snaps over the first two weeks of the season, and was on a similar trajectory in Week 3 against the Carolina Panthers as well. However, his 54th snap that day and 176th on the season was his last for the year: he suffered a non-contact torn ACL in his left knee in the early fourth quarter of the Raiders’ eventual 36-22 loss.

Before the season-ending injury, Epps had been an important but inconsistent player in the Raiders’ defensive backfield. While he did serve as the entire unit’s on-field communicator — a role that went to fellow future Patriot Robert Spillane after his ACL tear — his tackling and man coverage were lacking.

2025 preview

Position: Rotational free safety | Ability: Fringe starter/Role player | Contract: Signed through 2025

What will be his role? The Patriots like versatility in their defensive backs and Epps has shown that he can play both free and strong safety. That said, given the current state of the safety group, the expectation is that he will primarily compete for deep safety snaps: him filling that role would allow Kyle Dugger and Jabrill Peppers to play their more natural roles closer to the line of scrimmage. In that role, Epps projects as a rotational option and potential spot starter.

What is his growth potential? Epps’ development at this stage in his career is closely tied to his recovery from his torn ACL. If he can get back to full speed both physically and mentally, he should be able to come close to the level of play he showed during his best seasons in 2022 and 2023.

Does he have positional versatility? Even though he projects mostly as a free safety, as noted above, Epps can fill other spots in the secondary as well. He has plenty of experience both as a box defender and in the slot, and — even though he played only 11 special teams snaps in two seasons as a Raider — in the kicking game as well: before becoming a starter with the Eagles in 2022, Epps was a regular on five special teams units.

What is his salary cap situation? As part of his aforementioned one-year deal with the Patriots, Epps is carrying a $1.465 million salary cap hit in 2025. That number consists of a $1.17 million base salary, $150,000 signing bonus proration, $120,000 in likely to be earned roster bonuses (as well as $560,000 classified not likely to be earned), and a $25,000 workout bonus. Besides his signing bonus, $350,000 of his salary is also fully guaranteed.

How safe is his roster spot? Even though his contract includes $500,000 in guarantees, Epps is no surefire lock to make the Patriots’ roster this fall. First and foremost, his recovery will need to go smoothly in order for him to make the team straight away as opposed to starting out on the PUP list. Additionally, he will need to prove himself worthy of a sixth spot on the team alongside Kyle Dugger, Jabrill Peppers, Jaylinn Hawkins, Craig Woodson and special teams ace Brenden Schooler — meaning that his competition will not just be fellow safety Dell Pettus but also bubble players elsewhere on the roster.

Summary: If Epps is able to return to form, he could be the missing piece for the Patriots at safety: a reliable deep centerfielder capable of filling the role once held by Devin McCourty. If so, his presence would have a trickle-down effect and allow the team to use Kyle Dugger and Jabrill Peppers closer to the line of scrimmage. Given his injury status — he was a limited participant during offseason workouts — as well as his inconsistent play before tearing his ACL, however, that “if” is a big one.

What do you think about Marcus Epps heading into the 2025 season? Please head down to the comment section to share your thoughts.