If you thought the New England Patriots had a bad secondary last season, you're not alone. Bill Belichick apparently agrees with you.
Belichick has spent the better part of the 2011 preseason cleaning up the mess left over from last season in his secondary.
Veteran safety James Sanders was sent packing.
Jonathan Wilhite was quietly shown the door.
Brandon Meriweather was kicked to the curb.
On Tuesday, it was Darius Butler’s turn to get his walking papers. Butler broke the news of his release on Twitter.
DariusButler28: Its been real New England. I was blessed to have a chance to play and start my NFL career here. But its time to open a new chapter. Thx #patsnation
In an ironic twist, Twitter then broke the news to Butler that he’d been claimed on waivers by the Carolina Panthers.
DariusButler28: #twitter is taking over. I found out I was a Panther from you guys 1st lol crazy
So, where does that leave the Patriots?
Devin McCourty, Leigh Bodden, and Kyle Arrington are as good a trio of cornerbacks as you’ll find in the NFL. Ras-I Dowling is a promising rookie who, if he can stay healthy, should make an impact this season.
Butler was, at best, the fifth cornerback on the depth chart behind Dowling. He may have fallen behind recently acquired Antwaun Molden.
He was an extra guy. Would I have liked to see the Patriots hang on to him to see if he could develop the instincts that appeared to be lacking over the first two years of his NFL career? Sure.
I wasn’t quite ready to give up on the kid, and I’m still not convinced he won’t become a quality NFL cornerback. But he wasn’t going to be a huge part of the 2011 New England Patriots. So when they needed to release someone to make room for an intriguing young linebacker whom they claimed off waivers from the Miami Dolphins named AJ Edds, Butler was the obvious guy to go.
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