
Patriots release captain, long-time long snapper Joe Cardona
The Patriots’ roster is officially devoid of players who won Super Bowls with the franchise.
Long-time long snapper and 2024 captain Joe Cardona was released Tuesday, the Patriots announced. The move comes on the heels of Mike Vrabel and co. selecting long snapper Julian Ashby in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft on Saturday.
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Cardona, a 2015 fifth-round pick out of Navy, played 160 regular-season games in 10 seasons and appeared in 13 playoff games with two Super Bowl championships. He finishes off his Patriots career with 20 tackles and one forced fumble. He was one of the highest-paid long snappers in the NFL. He was due a $1.255M salary, a $25,000 roster bonus and $68,000 in per-game roster bonuses this season.
The 33-year-old specialist is also a lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve.
The Patriots released two other Super Bowl Champions, center David Andrews and linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley, this offseason. They didn’t re-sign three players who had won Super Bowls in New England: quarterback Jacoby Brissett, cornerback Jonathan Jones and defensive end Deatrich Wise.
Ashby, who’s 6-1, 231 pounds, played collegiately at Furman and Vanderbilt. He recorded two tackles last season.