Why Patriots seemingly have open spot on 90-man roster
The New England Patriots currently have a hidden player on their 90-man roster. Let us explain: The Patriots have 74 veteran player on their roster, selected 12 players in the 2023 NFL Draft and have signed three undrafted free agents, yet they cannot add a 90th player to their roster. That’s because long-time safety Devin […]
The New England Patriots currently have a hidden player on their 90-man roster.
Let us explain: The Patriots have 74 veteran player on their roster, selected 12 players in the 2023 NFL Draft and have signed three undrafted free agents, yet they cannot add a 90th player to their roster. That’s because long-time safety Devin McCourty’s retirement has not been officially processed by the NFL league office, a source confirmed to A to Z Sports.
Don’t get your hopes up about a McCourty return. His retirement is unlikely to process until after June 1 for salary-cap purposes. His salary-cap number will lower from $9.7M to $4.665M for a $5.035M savings, per Miguel Benzan, aka @PatsCap on Twitter. McCourty would have $3.5 million in dead money in 2023 and $6.2 million in dead money next season.
The Patriots did not sign or draft a safety to replace McCourty, but they’re reportedly moving Jalen Mills from cornerback to safety to join Kyle Dugger, Adrian Phillips, Jabrill Peppers, Joshuah Bledsoe, Cody Davis, Brenden Schooler and Brad Hawkins in the position group. Cornerbacks Myles Bryant and Jonathan Jones have also played safety in New England.
In a separate matter, linebacker Jamie Collins is listed on the Patriots' roster on the official team site, but he is a free agent.
