Jerod Mayo Reveals Patriots’ Plan For Kyle Dugger After Transition Tag

Kyle Dugger was tagged by the Patriots on Tuesday, but not in the way commonly practiced in the NFL every March.

New England used the transition -- not the franchise -- tag on Dugger, whose rookie contract was set to expire next Wednesday. The 2020 second-round pick became only the sixth NFL player in the last 15 years to receive the transition tag, which allows the Patriots to match any offer sheet Dugger signs over the offseason.

As head coach Jerod Mayo revealed to the media Tuesday, New England hopes the transition tag on Dugger is merely a stopgap maneuver.

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"Kyle is a talented player with a strong work ethic who has improved every year and been extremely productive since joining our team in 2020," Mayo told reporters, per ESPN. "We value players with high character and chose to use the transition designation to give both sides more time to try to reach a long-term agreement, which is our goal with Kyle."

Of course, Dugger wasn't the only Patriots player impacted by the transition tag. The strategy prevented New England from using the franchise designation, which could have been applied to a valuable impending free agent like offensive lineman Mike Onwenu.

So, there's a chance the Patriots don't re-sign any of their players who are set to hit the open market, which wouldn't be a great look for a franchise that hasn't had much recent success at developing and retaining homegrown talent.