Even if health hasn’t been on his side lately, Julian Edelman remains a New England Patriots fan favorite. So, cutting him probably wouldn’t go over well.
However, Bill Belichick never has been afraid to make unpopular moves, and perhaps moving on from the longtime Pats wideout could be his next course of action.
A team of ESPN NFL analysts identified cut candidates this offseason from all 32 teams. With the Patriots, they named Edelman, who would save New England $3.44 million in 2021 if it got rid of him.
“An Edelman cut would surprise a lot of people, but he’s coming off a season in which he played just six games and the team has younger receivers who likely are a bigger part of its future,” wrote Dan Graziano. “It might be best to hasten the inevitable and let Edelman go be free to sign with the Buccaneers.”
Even if health was an issue for him last season and the Patriots are entering this offseason with a lot of cap space, their wideout situation last season was an abject disaster.
And unless they plan on blowing a ton of that cash on an overhaul of the position, it might actually be more valuable to keep Edelman.
