After initially surprising observers by keeping eight wide receivers on the roster after Tuesday’s 53-man cut-down deadline, the Patriots pulled off two dramatic cuts on Wednesday by letting go of veteran receiver Kendrick Bourne and second-year man Javon Baker.
The previous day, New England also let go of Marcus Epps, the longtime safety the team had signed as he tries to come back from an ACL tear.
For Bourne and Epps, the goal after the cuts may well have been to save face and ensure that they can continue their NFL careers by landing jobs elsewhere. Both players were reported to have requested their releases after the Patriots axed them.
Adam Schefter of ESPN, for example, posted on X/Twitter: “Patriots are releasing WR Kendrick Bourne after he requested his release, per source.”
And Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald reported on Epps, “Patriots S Marcus Epps requested to be released, and the team is granting it, per source. Not a fit.”
Patriots Coach Mike Vrabel: ‘That’s News to Me’
Asked about players requesting their release on Wednesday while meeting with the media, though, coach Mike Vrabel offered quite a different take. Neither Epps not Bourne, he intimated in a rather blunt way, requested they be released.
Said Vrabel: “That’s news to me. I mean, I think that we just, again, try to put the roster together. I guess when it when it doesn’t work out, you break up with somebody, your girlfriend doesn’t want to be with you, and then you say, ‘Well, I don’t want to be with you either.’ I’m not going to get into all that.”
Pressed further on it, Vrabel stuck with his initial response.
“We’re not going to go back and forth here,” he said. “We’re trying to build a roster. You’ve got to move on from some guys. You make connections with guys, you coach them, they earn opportunities, they get more opportunities, they take advantage of them and that’s kind of how these things go.”
Kendrick Bourne, Marcus Epps Valuable Veterans
Both Epps and Bourne, it should be noted, figure to land elsewhere. Epps has already signed with the Eagles, where he will suit up for the defending Super Bowl champs. Epps played for Philadelphia from 2019-22 before leaving for the Raiders and signing with the Patriots in March of this year.
Bourne is rumored to be drawing interest from his former team, too, as the 49ers are rebuilding their injury-ravaged receiver room now, too.
Patriots Kept Kyle Dugger
Vrabel was also asked about the situation with Kyle Dugger, who was expected to be either released or traded ahead of Tuesday’s deadline but instead stuck on the roster. Dugger is coming back from ankle surgery after a rough 2024 season.
“I think he’s feeling better and I thought he had some really good snaps against New York,” Vrabel said of why Dugger stuck around. “I think he can help us, and obviously, find a role. We talk to him about that, have talked to him about that. We’ll continue to talk to him about that and provide value to the football team.”
Patriots’ Vrabel Gets Blunt on 2 Veterans After Cutting Them