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New England Patriots: Was releasing Alfonzo Dennard a mistake?

By Aryan von Eicken

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After a very exciting draft week, the New England Patriots are back to business. The New England Patriots released CB Alfonzo Dennard, LS Tyler Ott and LB Deontae Skinner. While releasing Ott obviously makes sense, since they drafted a long snapper in the 5th round, though he may not be available, releasing Dennard is a highly questionable move by the Patriots, especially at a position in which they already lost two key players during free agency.

Oct 12, 2014; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Buffalo Bills running back Anthony Dixon (26) runs the ball while being defended by New England Patriots cornerback Alfonzo Dennard (37) during the first half at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

Dennard was a very talented player during his time with the Patriots. While he seemed to take a step backwards last year, as he got passed on the depth chart by the would be Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler, Dennard clearly showed ability and upside in the two years prior. When entering the draft, Dennard was a possible first or second round pick, but due to altercations with the law four days prior to the draft, his draft stock tanked and the Patriots wound up taking him in the seventh round.

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Dennard already made an impact on the field during his rookie year, playing in ten games and getting three interceptions. He brings a very good mix of size and speed to the table and was a more than able cornerback when playing. His second year in the NFL, he was the full-time number two cornerback, playing as a complement to Aqib Talib. He handled that job extremely well, and was even forced into playing as the No. 1 corner at times when Talib was injured.

His fall on the depth chart in 2014 was a bit surprising to many. What is even more surprising is that after losing their top two corners to free agency, the Patriots decided to release Dennard. This now limits their depth to Malcolm Butler, Logan Ryan, Kyle Arrington and Bradley Fletcher. They also drafted Darryl Roberts from Marshall in the seventh round, but I doubt that he is going to have a large impact in the next two years.

This years defense will be very different from last years. Last year the defense relied very heavily on the secondary locking down receivers, but this year it will be up to the front seven to make the difference, as the Pats secondary,  at least on paper, is expected to not be nearly as good as it  was last year.

Only time will tell, if releasing Dennard was a mistake by the Patriots, but either way it is a risky move. It leaves them with two young and unexperienced cornerbacks, a cornerback that has played mostly as a nickel corner for most of his career and Bradley Fletcher who is coming off a terrible year in Philadelphia. Someone will have to step up next year in order for the Patriots to be able to make another at the Super Bowl title.

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