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The impending departure of Trent Brown from the New England Patriots signals the end of his progressively tumultuous tenure with the team, as his contract voids at the close of the league’s business day. While there’s a slim chance of a contract extension before then, it’s improbable given the dissatisfaction evident on both sides during the previous season.
As per a report on January 19th by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Brown’s contract with the Patriots “will void today without an extension from the team, setting him up to be a free agent on March 13, per source.”
Brown Has Been Vocal Regarding His Time in New England
Brown first joined the Patriots in 2018, contributing to a Super Bowl victory before departing for the Raiders. He returned to New England in 2021 with two years remaining on his deal. Despite a solid start, his 2023 season was marked by inconsistency and injury, limiting him to just 11 games and 55 percent of offensive snaps. In the latter half of 2023, Brown was vocal about leaks and info that was getting to the media.
Brown has continued to refute reports about his tardiness and a narrative that has suggested he openly talks about playing for other organizations. He has claimed that someone inside the organization is running a “smear campaign.
“It’s been a rough year,” Brown said in a conversation with NESN.com. “This has been a year like no other that I’ve had in my NFL career as far as the amount of anonymous sources that have come forward to spew complete lies about my character. It’s been tough to even go in the building every day knowing that there’s somebody that I probably look at every day, or smiles in my face every day, that is running a smear campaign.”
Brown also addressed the rumors that he had been openly discussing the opportunity to join another organization with NESN.com
“That never came out of my mouth,” Brown told NESN. “I would never say that after a win. If anything, I was more pissed off about my performance in the Pittsburgh game. But I was happy that we got a win. I would never take away from what just happened for the group to talk about anything. … I’ve never openly said anything about any NFC team or anything like that. It’s always been about me being wherever God wants me to be, and me handling my current situation. … I never put the cart before the horse.”
The Patriots O-Line Needs a Makeover
With Brown’s departure, the Patriots face the task of solidifying the left tackle position, which saw a rotation involving Conor McDermott and Vederian Lowe alongside Brown last season. This offseason presents an opportunity for the team to address this area of need and bolster their offensive line for the upcoming season. Something that will be vital, especially if the Patriots plan to start a rookie QB in 2024.
The offensive line is in such dire need of revamping that many mock drafts have considered the idea that the Patriots could select an offensive lineman with the third overall pick in the upcoming NFL draft.
NFLdraftbuzz.com ranks Notre Dame’s Joe Alt and Penn State’s Olu Fashanu as the two best offensive linemen available. If the Patriots do decide to add a veteran QB through free agency and don’t select WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Patriot fans can expect the offensive line rebuild to start with one of these two prospects.
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