Patriots to release longtime center

The move will take place Thursday, Reiss adds. Andrews is rehabbing the shoulder injury that kept him out of the lineup for all but four contests this past season. If Thursday’s news winds up being followed by a retirement decision, this situation will come to a close in the same fashion as Julian Edelman‘s in 2021.

Indeed, Jeff Howe of The Athletic notes it is not currently known if Andrews intends to continue his playing career. The two-time Super Bowl winner had one year remaining on his contract, with part of his scheduled base salary guaranteed. This release will yield $2.68M in cap savings for New England while generating a dead money charge of $4M.

Andrews has made 136 combined regular-season and postseason appearances in his career, starting all but five of them. The 32-year-old remained a mainstay along the offensive line during his Pats run, consistently drawing positive PFF evaluations. Even if the final remaining holdover from New England’s most recent Super Bowl suits up in 2025, though, the team will move in a different direction under center.

Mike Giardi of the Boston Sports Journal recently reported Andrews was seen as a cut candidate during the combine. Upgrading along the offensive line is known to be a major priority for the team, and that effort will now include finding a replacement center. The likes of Drew Dalman (Bears), Ryan Kelly (Vikings) and Josh Myers (Jets) have found new teams in the early stages of free agency. The Patriots may need to wait until next month’s draft as a result to find a new starter in the middle.

New England’s right guard spot is accounted for with Michael Onwenu, and the team worked out a deal with veteran right tackle Morgan Moses on Monday. The left tackle and guard positions are still unaccounted for at this point in the offseason, and the same is now true at center as well.