7 players the New England Patriots gave up on too soon in the Bill Belichick era

At the start of any NFL free agency, there's always uncertainty about the safety of players remaining on your favorite team.

Time and time again, sports will break your heart. There's no such thing as loyalty, which can be a hard reality for fans and players to accept. And because of that, there will inevitably be players a team gives up on far too soon, whether due to their unwillingness to pay them a hefty contract or signing someone else in their place that they believe they will get equal or more value.

Unfortunately, the Patriots and Bill Belichick are not excluded from this happening over the last twenty-plus years.

Of all the players New England has chosen not to re-sign or even trade, at least seven stand out as the most prominent of those they moved on from too soon.