Under new head coach Mike Vrabel, the New England Patriots were bound to make no shortage of roster changes ahead of the 2025 season. With tons of money to spend and a new regime coming in with the intention of returning the six-time Super Bowl champions to the top of the NFL, new faces were bound to enter the picture at the expense of some old faces whose time in New England is now up.
One of those old faces, as we learned on Friday, is linebacker Ja'Whaun Bentley, who took to X on Friday morning to seemingly announce that his time with the Patriots has come to an end.
“New England!! Thank You for Everything!! It’s Been a Blessing,” Bentley tweeted on Friday morning. Not long after, ESPN's Mike Reiss confirmed that New England's plan is to release the seven-year veteran.
“Patriots LB Ja'Whaun Bentley says goodbye. Expectation is that the team will be releasing him today. Three-time captain. Has been with team for 7 seasons. Just said over the weekend he has been fully cleared recently after sustaining a torn pec Week 2 last season.”
Bentley was a 5th Round pick out of Purdue in 2018, but didn't see extended playing time until his third season in the NFL, when he finished the 2020 season with 91 tackles in 13 starts. Over the next three seasons, Bentley led the Patriots in tackles each year, registering 348 tackles in the 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons combined.
Bentley's departure is preceded not just by the signings of linebackers Robert Spillane, Christian Elliss, and Harold Landry III, who should more than make up for the production New England will be losing with Bentley on his way out, but also a season-ending pectoral tear just two games into the 2024 season. He had only one year remaining on a contract extension he signed ahead of the 2023 season.
