NFL trade deadline passes without Patriots making any moves

The NFL did see some action before its trade deadline on Tuesday, but the New England Patriots did not get involved. The 4:00 p.m. ET deadline came and went without the team making any moves.

Simply based on their history, the Patriots were seen as realistic candidates to make a move heading towards deadline day: New England has made at least one deadline trade in four of the last five years, including two straight. However, nothing materialized this year.

“If something comes up, it comes up, and if it doesn’t, it doesn’t,” Bill Belichick said about the trade deadline on Monday.

The team lacking resources — New England has only $2.66 million in salary cap space at the moment, per Miguel Benzan — likely played a role in its inactivity. Meanwhile, a player like wide receiver N’Keal Harry, whose agent actively requested a trade over the summer, apparently still has a role within the team’s offense moving forward.

Add it all up, and you get the Patriots staying put.

Obviously, though, they have been quite active on the trade market over the last few months. A total of seven transactions were made between March and today, including the ones that brought offensive linemen Trent Brown and Yasir Durant as well as cornerback Shaun Wade aboard. New England also parted ways with star cornerback Stephon Gilmore, running back Sony Michel, offensive tackle Marcus Cannon and tight end Ryan Izzo.

The NFL closing its trading window also brings with it a procedural change: all players that are released are now subject to waivers. Previously, only those with less than four seasons had to go through the waiver wire.

While the Patriots did not make any moves on deadline day, the following transactions were made on Tuesday:

• The Denver Broncos sent cornerback Kary Vincent Jr. to the Philadelphia Eagles for a 2022 sixth-round draft pick.
• The New York Jets sent tight end Dan Brown to the Kansas City Chiefs for offensive lineman Laurent Duvernay-Tardif.
• The Houston Texans sent linebacker Charles Omenihu to the San Francisco 49ers for a future late-round draft pick.
• The Pittsburgh Steelers sent linebacker Melvin Ingram to the Kansas City Chiefs for a 2022 sixth-round draft pick.

Furthermore, the Broncos sent star linebacker Von Miller to the Los Angeles Rams for 2022 second- and third-round picks on Monday.