3 surprise cuts the Patriots could make this offseason

3. Julian Edelman

The Patriots lost Julian Edelman in October after he suffered a knee injury. He immediately went on IR, but there was at least some hope he could return by the end of the year. It never worked out, and his season was finished two months early. He’s been actively cheering Tom Brady in Tampa Bay, and analysts are already connecting the dots to bring him to Florida.

Obviously, the Patriots would love to trade Edelman to the Bucs for something like they did with Rob Gronkowski, but it might not be in the cards after Edelman’s injury. The Patriots might do him a solid and just let him pick his next team, be it the defending Super Bowl champions or someone else.

Edelman is owed just over $6 million next season, the last season on a two-year deal. If they cut Edelman, they’d still carry a $2.66 million cap charge, but the rest is saved by the franchise.

This would be more helping out Edelman while finally seeing what is going on with the wide receiving corps. N’Keal Harry is facing the biggest make-or-break year in the NFL this season. He could finally show why he was a first-round pick, or he could be out of the league at this time next year.

Jakobi Meyers has been a nice surprise, but he still hasn’t really shown the ability to be a top receiver. Gunner Olszewski was a really nice piece who could do pretty much anything, but again he’s not a top option.

Edelman likely isn’t a top option anymore, either. The Patriots might want to move on from the Brady era completely, and it doesn’t help to have one of his best friends and biggest cheerleaders in the locker room.