Hightower enters his first season as a coach after a nine-year career as a linebacker with the Patriots. Hightower joined New England as a first-round draft pick (25th overall) in the 2012 NFL Draft out of Alabama. He was a three-time Super Bowl Champion, four-time team captain, two-time Pro Bowler and was selected to the team's 2010s All-Decade team. Overall, he played in 117 regular season games with 114 starts and registered 569 total tackles, 27 sacks, one interception, 18 passes defensed, two forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries, including one returned for a touchdown in his first NFL game. Hightower also played and started in 17 postseason games, adding 81 total tackles, three sacks, one interception, four passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Hightower made two Super Bowl altering plays during his career and was part of a record-setting performance in another. In Super Bowl XLIX vs. Seattle, Hightower made a crucial tackle on Seahawks RB Marshawn Lynch at the 1-yard line on the play before CB Malcolm Butler intercepted Seattle QB Russell Wilson to seal the victory in the waning moments of the game. New England trailed the Atlanta Falcons, 28-12, midway through the fourth quarter when Hightower strip-sacked Falcons QB Matt Ryan at the Atlanta 25-yard line. The fumble was recovered by the Patriots and the turnover led to a touchdown that helped spark the record come-from-behind victory in Super Bowl LI. He led a defensive unit in the Super Bowl LIII win over the L.A. Rams, recording two sacks and a pass defensed as part of a stifling defense that became the second team in Super Bowl history to hold its opponent to just three points.
