Report: Patriots to sign former Jets LB David Harris on 2-year deal

The defending Super Bowl champions just keep finding ways to bolster an already stacked roster.

Scooping up the longtime defensive leader of a division rival, the New England Patriots have reached an agreement with free-agent linebacker David Harris on a two-year contract, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports, citing a source.

Harris' deal has a base value of $5 million ($1.25 million guaranteed), with incentives boosting the potential total to $6.75 million, a source told NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

A second-round pick in 2007, Harris played the first 11 seasons of his career with the New York Jets before being released in a surprise move earlier this month.

The Jets cutting ties amid their ongoing rebuild was widely considered to be a cost-cutting move, more so than a split influenced by any sort of major drop-off in play.

Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio reports that Harris' two-year, $5-million deal is more than the pay cut the Jets offered prior to his release.

Harris started 147 games - including 127 of a possible 128 over the last seven years - during a rock-solid stay with the Jets. He topped the 100-tackle mark on six occasions over that stretch, posting a total of 1,260 to rank second in franchise history.

The 33-year-old's addition alongside Pro Bowl linebacker Dont'a Hightower could prove to be a major upgrade on the interior, giving Bill Belichick and Co. all the more flexibility with the defensive front seven.