The Patriots Have Improved Their Roster So Much They're Giving Away Former Cornerstone Players for Practically Nothing

Teams dump players in the primes of their careers a week before the trading deadline for one of two reasons. Either because they realize the team is going nowhere and the time to stockpile draft capital has begun. Or because they have so much talent on the roster that said veterans can no longer contribute. 

In the case of the Patriots' two moves last night, there can be no doubt which one reason applies. Because even though a defense that was 22nd in the league last year been upgraded to the point they're allowing the fourth fewest points per game in the league, that's still not enough to satisfy the highest paid player in franchise history:

Milton Williams wants to do better. And Kyle Dugger and Keion White are not part of the equation.

Yes, the future was bright for Dugger and White not long ago. By 2023, Dugger had established himself as a key component of the Belichick Family defense. After Jerod Mayo was installed as head coach and his contract was up, there was an elaborate mating dance between Dugger and Eliot Wolf, before signing a 4-year, $58 million deal. While White is a year away from free agency and at this time last year seemed like a mortal lock to earn the coveted second contract. 

So what happened? Roster improvement happened. A much-needed infusion of talent happened. And Mike Vrabel happened. Which is to say, Vrabel's defensive system happened. All of which contributed to two of the more successful draft picks of the late stages of the Belichick Era (I admit that's not a high bar to reach) were no longer the fits they had been. 

In Dugger's case, he went from playing a team-high 1,116 of 1,139 snaps in 2023 to battling injuries last year to less than 40% of the snaps this year. Simply put, he got passed on the depth chart by Jaylinn Hawkins:

And Craig Woodson, who wasted no time going from 4th round rookie to every down player, leading the entire defense in snaps. 

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White met a similar fate. He was battling illness earlier in the year and that stunted his growth. But he also lost playing time to new additions Harold Landry, K'Lavon Chaisson, and UDFA Elijah Ponder, as well returning veteran Anfernee Jennings. All are edge defenders. And if I'm doing the math right, a defense only has two edges, which meant no opportunities for White. And when he didn't dress Sunday against the Browns, his fate appeared to be sealed. And here we find ourselves:

Another major factor was the style of play for both, which had proven to be too limited for what Vrabel has established. I wish I could find where I'd said this recently, but it's buried under piles of blogs, obscure references and run-on sentences. So you'll just have to take my word for it. Dugger had become a liability in pass coverage and was being targeted as far back as last year. White went from highly promising pass rusher to a guy you realized had only one move, which was bull-rushing and trying to overpower people. That'll work against some blockers, but it's not going to get you sustained success in an NFL where offensive tackles are starting to average 325-330 pounds. 

So while I'm sorry to see these guys go, because they were fun to watch a lot of the time, the fact they were good enough to play a lot last year but hardly at all this year is a positive sign this team has gotten a lot, lot better.