The New England Patriots have a tendency to stick with their players through thick and thin, but one starter was a surprise cut on Friday afternoon.
According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, the Patriots have released former Pro Bowl and All-Pro starting punter Jake Bailey. The move comes two months after head coach Bill Belichick said that he still had a future with the team despite a suspension for unspecified reasons.
Bailey was limited to nine games this past season after suffering an injury. But it wasn’t exactly his best season.
Last year Bailey averaged a career-low 42.1 yards per punt. While he improved mightily as the team’s kickoff specialist, he had career-lows in almost every aspect of punting up until his season abruptly ended.
Jake Bailey was one of the rare punter draft picks, taken by the Patriots in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft after winning All-Pac-12 honors at Stanford in back-to-back seasons.
As a rookie, Bailey was rock solid, but in 2020 he emerged as one of the best in the league. That year he averaged 48.7 yards per punt and downed over 56-percent of his passes inside the 20-yard line. For his efforts, he earned Pro Bowl and First-Team All-Pro honors.
The following year, Bailey’s numbers weren’t quite as elite, but still well enough to secure a four-year, $13.5 million contract extension after the season.
Now he’s going to be looking for a new team in 2023.