Report: Patriots give up on rare whiff by Bill Belichick, will release WR Mohamed Sanu
Even the six-time Super Bowl champions make mistakes some time.
The New England Patriots opted to release wide receiver Mohamed Sanu on Wednesday, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, ending a tenure low on production but quite high on price. The Patriots acquired Sanu from the Atlanta Falcons last October for a second-round pick.
Source: The #Patriots are releasing veteran WR Mohamed Sanu. A surprise.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 2, 2020
The 31-year-old Sanu, a longtime secondary option for Matt Ryan, was acquired to stabilize a volatile wide receiver corps that saw the exits of Antonio Brown and Josh Gordon, plus injuries to Julian Edelman, Phillip Dorsett and first-rounder N’Keal Harry. Part of the reason for the high price was competition in the trade market from the San Francisco 49ers.
Mohamed Sanu trade didn’t work out for Patriots
Sanu went on to post 26 catches on 47 targets with 207 receiving yards and one touchdown in eight regular season games. He wasn’t much better in the Patriots’ lone playoff game, hauling in a single catch on five targets.
Sanu had one season left on his contract, but the Patriots apparently decided the veteran’s $6.5 million salary wasn’t worth the roster spot. That added up to the Patriots giving up a highly valuable Day 2 draft pick for 11 playoff receiving yards, the kind of move you don’t often see from Bill Belichick. However, it’s still a credit to the coach for not worrying about the sunk cost in draft capital.
As for the second-round pick the Patriots gave up for Sanu, the Falcons traded it to the Baltimore Ravens for tight end Hayden Hurst, a former first-rounder. The Ravens eventually used the 55th overall pick on Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins, enriching an already terrifying offense.
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