diff --git a/src/queue/processors.ts b/src/queue/processors.ts
index d2ca9c7291..eb7777fd3d 100644
--- a/src/queue/processors.ts
+++ b/src/queue/processors.ts
@@ -4044,11 +4044,12 @@ async function maybeReReviewOnLinkedIssueChange(
   if (isConvergenceRepoAllowed(env, repoFullName)) {
     const openPullRequests = await listOpenPullRequests(env, repoFullName);
     // Issue-side label/assignment changes can flip linked-issue hard-rule verdicts from mergeable to close.
-    // Wake every linked open PR immediately: silently dropping a tail here can leave stale passing gates on PRs
-    // that now violate deterministic issue hard rules. Stagger the jobs so the expensive re-gates do not run inline
-    // or stampede the queue consumer.
+    // Wake a rate-aware leading batch promptly; the staleness-ordered sweep still converges any linked tail
+    // without letting one issue webhook fan out unbounded foreground re-gates. Stagger the jobs so the expensive
+    // re-gates do not run inline or stampede the queue consumer.
     const linkingPrs = openPullRequests
       .filter((pr) => pr.linkedIssues.includes(issueNumber))
+      .slice(0, SWEEP_MAX_PRS)
       .map((pr) => ({ number: pr.number, createdAt: pr.createdAt ?? null }));
     for (const [index, pr] of linkingPrs.entries()) {
       const prNumber = pr.number;
diff --git a/test/unit/queue.test.ts b/test/unit/queue.test.ts
index 36d54ca3dc..06901214a7 100644
--- a/test/unit/queue.test.ts
+++ b/test/unit/queue.test.ts
@@ -2660,7 +2660,7 @@ describe("queue processors", () => {
     ]);
   });
 
-  it("REGRESSION: issue-side linked PR wake queues every linked PR so hard-rule changes cannot leave stale passing gates", async () => {
+  it("REGRESSION: issue-side linked PR wake caps linked PR fanout to the sweep budget", async () => {
     const sent: Array<{ message: import("../../src/types").JobMessage; options?: QueueSendOptions }> = [];
     const env = createTestEnv({
       GITHUB_APP_PRIVATE_KEY: await generatePrivateKeyPem(),
@@ -2697,13 +2697,13 @@ describe("queue processors", () => {
     });
 
     expect(fetchCount).toBe(0);
-    expect(sent).toHaveLength(SWEEP_MAX_PRS + 2);
+    expect(sent).toHaveLength(SWEEP_MAX_PRS);
     expect(sent.map(({ message }) => message)).toEqual(
-      Array.from({ length: SWEEP_MAX_PRS + 2 }, (_, index) =>
+      Array.from({ length: SWEEP_MAX_PRS }, (_, index) =>
         expect.objectContaining({ type: "agent-regate-pr", repoFullName: "owner/agent-repo", prNumber: index + 1, installationId: 9001 }),
       ),
     );
-    expect(sent.map(({ options }) => options)).toEqual([undefined, { delaySeconds: 10 }, { delaySeconds: 20 }, { delaySeconds: 30 }, { delaySeconds: 40 }]);
+    expect(sent.map(({ options }) => options)).toEqual([undefined, { delaySeconds: 10 }, { delaySeconds: 20 }]);
   });
 
   it("REGRESSION (#2371): a coalesced issue-side signal schedules a trailing re-review so an add-then-remove sequence is never lost", async () => {