How Former Team Captain Suprised Patriots After Release

Joe Cardona exemplified what it meant to be part of the Patriots, and that was true after New England released the 33-year-old.

Of course, Cardona’s story was inspiring as an active member of the Navy Reserve, but he was a true leader throughout his decade at One Patriot Place.

That was why it came as a slight surprise that the Patriots released the veteran. The move seemed inevitable after New England drafted Julian Ashby in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft, but Cardona’s release fully cut ties to the franchise’s last Super Bowl team. What shouldn’t be a surprise was how Cardona left Foxboro, Mass.

“When long-snapper Joe Cardona was released early last week after 10 years with the Patriots, he made the rounds inside Gillette Stadium to say goodbye to various team employees with whom he’d developed a connection over the past decade,” ESPN’s Mike Reiss wrote in a column Sunday. “Part of that included Cardona, who was choking up at times, joining a meeting of the Patriots’ content team to say thank you.

“‘In my 30 years here, we’ve never had a (released) player come up and do that,’ Fred Kirsch, publisher and VP of content, said on the ‘Patriots Unfiltered’ show.”

Cardona’s release symbolized the change Mike Vrabel wanted to instill in his Patriots team, and it will be up to a new generation of players to build on the culture that others set for over a quarter century.