Ex-Patriots lineman Jason King reportedly files salary grievance against the club

After moving around the New England Patriots’ practice squad, the open market and the Baltimore Ravens during his first year in the NFL, offensive lineman Jason King returned to New England in 2018. The former undrafted rookie was unable to stick around again, however, and released by the team during early September’s roster cutdowns. Now, King has reportedly filed a grievance against the Patriots.

According to the Boston Sports Journal’s Miguel Benzan, the details of the grievance are unclear at the moment but it likely stems from King’s release: it appears as if the 24-year old is arguing that he was still injured when New England opted to release him. Teams, of course, are not allowed to let players go when they are dealing with injury. Either they are kept on the roster or placed on an appropriate reserve list.

The grievance has an impact on the Patriots’ salary cap. Per the Collective Bargaining Agreement, 40% ($145,200) of his original 2018 salary of $363,000 will hit the team’s salary cap upon filing. According to Benzan, this leaves the Patriots with a cap space of $5,097,239. If New England wins, the team receives a credit and increase this space. If it loses, however, the 60% that are left ($217,800) will also count against the salary cap.

New England, which has 10 days to file an answer to the grievance, is not new to the business of dealing with such cases. Just earlier this year, ex-Patriots wide receivers Malcolm Mitchell and Kenny Britt filed separate grievances against the club as well. Mitchell’s was eventually settled and it would not be a surprise if Britt’s was as well. The same is also expected to happen in this particular case.