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There were rumors and speculation for months about the New England Patriots reuniting with Trey Flowers, but all that talk can officially be put to rest.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Sunday, August 28, Flowers is returning to the AFC East after spending the last three seasons with the Detroit Lions, but he isn’t returning to the Patriots. Schefter broke the news of Flowers signing with the rival Miami Dolphins, whom the Patriots will play in the 2022 regular season opener on September 11.
Terms of the signing weren’t disclosed as of Sunday evening, but Flowers took to Twitter to reference his next landing spot in a conversation with his daughter Skyler.
Flowers Had 4 Strong Years in New England
Flowers spent the first four years of his career with the Patriots, helping them to win two Super Bowls. He led the Patriots in sacks every year from 2016 to 2018. Flowers bolted New England to sign with the Detroit Lions, where he reunited with former Patriots defensive coordinator turned Lions head coach Matt Patricia.
Patricia’s stint as the head coach in Detroit was disastrous.
Patricia posted a 13-29-1 record with no playoff appearances in just under three seasons patrolling the Lions’ sidelines. He was fired in-season during the 2020 campaign. Patricia rejoined Bill Belichick’s staff in New England last season in an advisory role.
This season, it appears Patricia will be the Patriots’ primary play-caller on offense, a role he’s never had before in the NFL. Whatever his role or responsibilities in New England, the result wasn’t another union between him and Flowers.
While Flowers had tallied 28.0 sacks from 2016 to 2019, his production dipped considerably in the last two seasons. Injuries limited Flowers to just 14 games combined in 2020 and 2021. If Flowers is healthy, he could still have some real value as a pass rusher.
Flowers celebrated his 29th birthday on August 16, so this could become a major value signing for the Dolphins if things go well next season. One question in Patriots Nation may have is why New England wasn’t more aggressive about bringing Flowers back.
Did the Patriots Need Flowers?
While some concerns were leading into the season about the play of New England’s defense, that doesn’t appear to be the biggest problem as we get closer to the start of the 2022 campaign. A lack of cohesion, buy-in and injury issues on the offensive side of the ball has taken top priority in Foxborough.
New England currently has a seemingly capable defensive line anchored by second-year up-and-comer Christian Barmore. There’s also the steady but unspectacular Lawrence Guy and Deatrich Wise. The strongest quality of the unit is its depth.
Behind Barmore, Guy and Wise are Davon Godchaux, Carl Davis, Henry Anderson, and promising rookies Sam Roberts and LaBryan Ray. If those five remain healthy throughout the season, the Patriots shouldn’t have much need for another addition–even one as potentially impacting as Flowers.
New England worked out a defensive back, WR, and two offensive linemen on Sunday, per ESPN’s Mike Reiss. None of the names are likely to move the needle as much as Flowers but might make more sense in the grand scheme of things.
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