Mike Vrabel Explains Patriots’ Decision To Release Well-Liked Veteran

Mike Vrabel promised a Patriots culture change, and that came at the expense of multiple well-liked players.

The final nail in the coffin of the previous New England era was when the Patriots released Joe Cardona. The 33-year-old was on the Super Bowl LIII team and was the last remnant from that period of the franchise.

It looked like the writing was on the wall for Cardona when the Patriots drafted long snapper Julian Ashby in the seventh round of this year’s draft. But Vrabel explained the decision behind Cardona’s release.

“We’ve been through this already in the offseason,” Vrabel told reporters, per a team-provided transcript. “I think anytime that you have to move on from players that have been at a place and that have been a part of successful football teams, it just comes down to our ability to acquire a player that we believe in strongly, and we just felt like that was the best decision to go with Julian. We’re going to have two young kickers that we’re going to be trying out, and after working Julian out, I think it became evident that that was probably what was in the best interest of the team. I have a lot of respect for Joe and what he’s done here. We tried to do that in the most respectful way possible and give him an opportunity to go and catch on.”

It didn’t take long for Cardona to find a new home as the two-time Super Bowl champion reportedly signed with the Miami Dolphins on Friday.

For the Patriots, there reportedly was interest in Ashby before the draft, so they felt the need to draft him and avoid competition. It will be a wait-and-see if that investment will pay off.