FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots signed veteran free agent LB Niko Koutouvides (NEE-koh KOO-tah-VEE-dees) today. Terms of the contract were not announced.
Koutouvides, 6-2, 238 pounds, is a veteran of seven NFL seasons with the Seattle Seahawks (2004-07), Denver Broncos (2008) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2010). He originally entered the NFL as a fourth round draft pick (116th overall) of Seattle in 2004 out of Purdue. After four seasons with the Seahawks, he signed with Denver as an unrestricted free agent in 2008. He was released by Denver after the season and signed with Tampa Bay in the 2009 offseason.
Koutouvides has played in 103 games with two starts and registered 101 special teams tackles and 54 total tackles on defense. He has also played in eight postseason games, including Super Bowl XL while with Seattle.