Patriots BREAKING: New England Trades Lineman to Raiders
FOXBORO — The New England Patriots have lightened their depth a bit on their offensive line heading into their Week 3 matchup with the Baltimore Ravens.
The Patriots have agreed to trade reserve swing tackle Justin Herron to the Las Vegas Raiders for a swap of draft picks in 2024.
Sources close to Sports Illustrated have indicated that Patriots will receive a sixth-round pick in 2024, while the Raiders will receive Herron, as well as a 2024 seventh-round selection.
Herron originally joined the Patriots as a sixth-round draft choice (195th overall) in 2020. The Wake Forest product played in 28 games for the Patriots in two-plus seasons with the team. Herron had yet to take a regular-season snap through two games-played in 2022.
Despite a satisfactory performance in training camp, fellow swing tackle Yodny Cajuste was believed to have topped Herron on the Patriots offensive line depth chart. Also, the team recently re-signed veteran tackle Marcus Cannon to serve as an alternate depth piece via the practice squad. New England’s starting offensive line rebounded from a subpar performance in Week 1, to a resoundingly positive showing in New England’s Week 2 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Despite his struggles, Herron has been a solid depth piece along the Patriots offensive line in 2021. There are positive components to his work in pass protection in terms of how he frames rushers and keeps them at the end of his reach. He is a patient lineman that works to stay square on the perimeter while displaying decent quickness in his feet. Herron’s lack of functional strength and body control in the run game are restrictive to creating vertical push.
Herron rejoins both his former offensive coordinator (now Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels) and ex-offensive line coach (now Las Vegas’ o-line coach) Carmen Bricillo in the Nevada desert.
For New England, they gain additional Draft capital in 2024, as well as opening a roster spot to accommodate the arrival of defensive lineman Daniel Ekuale, who is returning from his two-game suspension to start the 2022 season.
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