The New England Patriots' offensive line depth just got thinner by waiving 2024 fourth-round draft pick in offensive guard Layden Robinson.
It’s worth mentioning that Robinson was released with an injury designation. That means if he clears waivers, he’ll be added back to the Patriots’ injured list. From there, they can negotiate on an injury settlement, which will allow Robinson to be released and become a free agent.
The decision to waive Robinson with an injury designation shows how the team feels about his future with the organization. He worked mostly with the backups throughout the summer, and if the Pats thought he was a player worth hanging on to, they would have just assigned him to IR in the first place.
What Layden Robinson Release Means for the Patriots
This roster move also saves the Patriots money by reducing the overall cap hit for Robinson with him being on IR from $1,173,018 to $728,018.
In 2024, Robinson played in 13 total games with 11 starts between both guard positions, recording 603 offensive snaps (74%). He ranked at the bottom of the league in terms of production grading according to Pro Football Focus:
•Pass-Block: 41.9 (106th out of 136)
•Run-Block: 46.5 (128th out of 136)
•Overall: 43.6 (129th out of 136)
Robinson had five penalties and allowed four sacks with 33 total pressures and allowed six hits on the quarterback.
On Friday, the Patriots released 14 players, two of whom— Tyrese Robinson and Sidy Sow— played along the offensive line. That makes three offensive linemen from both the previous coaching regimes released in the last three days.
Robinson is the next to join the long list of players that new head coach Mike Vrabel cut ties with from the previous coaching regime. It’s clear that Vrabel would rather keep and work with the players that he identified and brought in rather than some of the players that were on the roster last year, especially for the offensive line.
The Patriots updated roster shows 14 offensive linemen ahead of the 53-man roster deadline on Tuesday:
- Garrett Bradbury, C
- Ben Brown, C
- Alec Lindstrom, C
- Jared Wilson, C/G
- Mehki Butler, G
- Cole Strange, G
- Jack Conley, OL
- Mike Onwenu, OL
- Marcus Bryant, OT
- Will Campbell, OT
- Demontrey Jacobs, OT
- Morgan Moses, OT
- Vederian Lowe, OT
- Caedan Wallace, OT