Patriots Reportedly Releasing Former Third-Round Pick

More changes are coming to the New England Patriots' defense in 2026, with the team reportedly moving on a Bill Belichick draft pick.

According to ESPN's Mike Reiss, the Patriots have informed hybrid linebacker/safety Marte Mapu that the team plans to release him. The former third-round pick out of Sacramento State was entering a contract year with the Patriots, and was due a base salary of $1.5 million this upcoming season.

Mapu was one of the few holdovers from the Belichick and Jerod Mayo coaching eras, finding ways to help New England on both defense and special teams. This past season, Mapu was the Patriots' personal protector on the punt unit.

Another change at linebacker: https://t.co/ri79uKWguI
— Ethan Hurwitz (@HurwitzSports) April 7, 2026

Bouncing between two positions, Mapu truly struggled to find his footing in New England. He played in 44 games, racking up just 25 total tackles to go with five pass breakups and three interceptions. All three of his interceptions -- one in each season -- came in memorable ways. In 2023, he intercepted Patrick Mahomes and almost returned it for a touchdown. Against the Buffalo Bills one season later, he picked off Josh Allen in the end zone, only to take it out and be tackled at the one-yard line.

This past year, he intercepted Tua Tagovailoa in what was a game-changing play in the fourth quarter of the team's first win of the season (a 33-27 victory in Week 2, the first win with the Patriots for new head coach Mike Vrabel).

He also was part of football royalty, telling Patriots.com back in 2023 about one former Patriots player who's part of his family.

"That’s my uncle," Mapu said about the Pro Football Hall of Famer Junior Seau. "I only met him once, but my dad and my uncle’s, that’s a part of their childhood. They grew up together, so football is part of our blood."

What Does This Mean For The Patriots?

This offseason has been filled with changes at the backup linebacker positions, and Mapu is now the third one to not return in 2026. The Patriots declined to tender Jack Gibbens to a restricted free agent contract, and Jahlani Tavai was released after five seasons.

Oct 20, 2024; London, United Kingdom; New England Patriots safety Marte Mapu (15) against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second half of an NFL International Series game at Wembley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The team will also need to replace Mapu on the punting unit. Mapu was tied for the team lead in solo special team tackles (eight). In 2024, safety Dell Pettus was the personal protector before Mapu was given the job one season later. Will Pettus return to his role next season?

This move will highlights that the Patriots are going through a linebacker reset, and will certainly look at the upcoming crop of players to help replenish these changes.

"We'd like to to maybe address that in the draft," Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf told local reporters at the NFL Combine this offseason. "It looks like a good year at linebacker as well. But we are happy with the group that we have. It's an area where we have a lot of kind of different pieces and the defensive staff was able to try to maximize that for us."

The Patriots' linebacker corps now includes Robert Spillane, Christian Elliss, KJ Britt, Otis Reese, Chad Muma and Amari Gainer. The team has 11 draft picks in the upcoming NFL Draft at the end of this month.

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