The New England Patriots have undergone a significant personnel turnover over the 2025 offseason. More than 20 new players have replaced those from the 2024 roster, and more may very well be on the way out. The latest casualty of the 2025 transformation is veteran safety Jabrill Peppers.
The new regime under Mike Vrabel has put its stamp on the 2025 roster in no uncertain terms. The turnover can't be considered anything but a colossal restructuring of arguably the worst roster in the NFL last season. If anyone was under the misconception that Vrabel was here to gently reform the old regime's roster, they were sadly mistaken.
Vrabel jettisoned a number of players from 2024, mostly through releases, since most had no trade value. Several never justified the expenditures after having been signed to bloated contract extensions by Eliot Wolf after 2023. Vrabel will not suffer either players who don't fit his scheme, those who aren't productive and overpaid, or those who are in any way problematic.
Many are gone, and more could be on the way out the door.
Several Patriots players are vulnerable to be cut before or during the upcoming seaon
Mike Vrabel is a man on a mission. He knows the type of players he wants and will do whatever it takes to get them on his football team. That also involves letting go of those who don't fit the profile. Veterans like Ja'Whaun Bentley, Davon Godchaux, Dietrich Wise Jr., David Andrews, former first-round pick Cole Strange, Sidy Sow, and others have already been shown the door.
The latest was safety Jabrill Peppers, who played in only six games in 2024. Players who are sidelined due to injury or other reasons will find themselves on the outside looking in. Vrabel is looking not only for players who fit his system but also those who can stay on the field to implement it.
Players who may have been casualties this offseason could see the door next offseason, like safety Kyle Dugger, who was the subject of numerous trade rumors, is a case in point.
After signing a huge contract extension following the 2023 season, he has mostly been unproductive.
In 13 games in 2024, which was plagued by a misdiagnosed injury that wasn't resolved until earlier this year, he recorded 81 tackles, one forced fumble, and one sack, but no interceptions. He might only be on the roster because his dead cap hit is enormous at $23.5M. He is a prime candidate to be cut next year.
Beyond the easy names, there are a few other Patriots who are on the roster bubble even after roster cuts
Also on the trade block this offseason was linebacker/edge Anfernee Jennings. Evidently, there were no takers. He has underperformed since being selected by Bill Belichick as a third-round draft pick in 2020. Jennings was another beneficiary of Eliot Wolf's largesse, who threw bags of money at players who hadn't measured up.
In four seasons with the Patriots, the edge rusher has 5.5 total sacks. Because the team was trying to move him before the regular season begins, it wouldn't be shocking if he's dealt sometime soon.
Another player on the bubble, if a decent tackle turns up on waivers, is a former sixth-round pick for whom the Patriots traded a sixth-round pick, Vederian Lowe. If Vrabel can get a seventh-round pick for him, he might be gone.
While he's been paring down the 2025 roster, Vrabel hasn't spared Wolf's 2024 draftees. His second-round pick, wide receiver Ja'Lynn Polk, is on IR, or he likely would have been cut. Fourth-rounder, guard Layden Robinson was cut, as was fourth-rounder Javon Baker, and seventh-round tight end, Jaheim Bell.
Sixth-round pick Joe Milton II was traded to Dallas for a fifth-round selection, a decent return, and a seventh-rounder, and Marcellas Dial Jr. is on IR after suffering an ACL tear earlier this summer. The only 2024 draft pick still on the roster, aside from first-round pick Drake Maye, is third-round pick, tackle/guard Caedan Wallace. Wolf drafted him to possibly play left tackle despite playing on the right side throughout his college career.
Given how he's performed in his New England tenure thus far, it wouldn't be surprising to see him out of town by next offseason.
Those are some former draft picks of Bill Belichick and Eliot Wolf who are gone or on the roster bubble. It's not a pretty picture. It shouldn't be totally unexpected to see Mike Vrabel clean house with most of them by next offseason. He has shown he is out to win, and these players might not play well enough to be part of that.