The Patriots may be hearing trade chatter, but Mike Vrabel isn’t sounding like a coach ready to tear anything down.
With the NFL trade deadline set for Tuesday, Nov. 10, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer floated defensive tackle Christian Barmore and cornerback Carlton Davis as possible New England trade candidates. Breer’s read was that any move would be about stockpiling draft capital and leaning into a younger roster.
Vrabel pushed back hard on that idea Wednesday.
“I think sometimes national reports have the tendency to do that. I have not shared that information with anybody,” Vrabel said.
“This time of year, I think that all these things kind of get drummed up. So, we’re focused on trying to prepare for [the Green Bay Packers on Sunday] and make the corrections from [last week].
“This is business as normal here, so I don’t know where a lot of these things come from. Certainly not from any conversations with me.”
That stance makes sense. The Patriots are 5-3, still in the AFC East race, and dealing away an impact player in the middle of that picture would be a major swing. If New England were to move someone of that caliber, it would almost have to come with a real “buying” answer on the other side.
Barmore is the tougher name to justify moving. In 2023, he had the best season of his career, piling up 8.5 sacks, 16 quarterback hits, 49 pressures, 13 tackles for loss and 64 combined tackles. That production led to a four-year, $84 million extension the following offseason.
This year, though, the 27-year-old hasn’t matched that contract value, especially against the run. His involvement in that area has dipped from 62.8% last season to 36%. Even so, the Patriots still treat him like a key pass-rush piece, using him heavily on pass-rush downs and in big third-down spots.
Moving him would ripple through the front. Cory Durden would be asked to take on a different, more pass-rush-heavy role, while 34-year-old DaQuan Jones would be pushed into a larger workload after serving as a relief option for the starters.
Davis creates a different kind of problem. He hasn’t shown signs of decline, but he is entering the final year of his contract, has a significant injury history and is owed $22 million in 2027. That makes him fit the youth-movement argument on paper.
On the field, though, losing him would open up a hole the Patriots would have to patch immediately. Vrabel and the defensive staff would then be forced to choose between starting Charles Woods opposite Christian Gonzalez or moving Marcus Jones out of his natural nickel role.
That matters with several offenses still left on the schedule ranking in the top 10 in passing yards per game. It also comes after Davis just returned to the starting lineup last week following a four-game absence.
He was also a major part of New England’s divisional round win over the Houston Texans in last season’s playoffs, intercepting C.J. Stroud twice.
The bigger picture points toward waiting. The Patriots’ defense has not yet fully lived up to the expectations that came with offseason additions like Dre’Mont Jones, All-Pro safety Kevin Byard and second-round pick Gabe Jacas, but injuries have been part of the story there too.
Last week’s game against the Miami Dolphins was the first time the starting cornerback trio of Gonzalez, Davis and Jones all played together since Week Three. The defense wasn’t perfect, but it did show signs of life by sacking Malik Willis five times, picking him off once and forcing four three-and-outs.
That’s why the offseason looks like the cleaner window for a major move. New England would have more flexibility then to shift resources, find replacements and try to match or beat Barmore’s production at a lower cost.
Even if the Patriots eventually decide to move on from Barmore or another established player, doing it now would ignore where the team sits in the AFC playoff race.
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