The Patriots trimmed their roster on Friday, waiving defensive tackle Travis Shaw as the team moved closer to training camp. It’s a small transaction on paper, but it does clear up a little more of the picture along New England’s defensive front.
Shaw, 22, earned his spot in May after a strong tryout at rookie minicamp. At 6-foot-5 and 335 pounds, he stood out immediately as the biggest and tallest defender on the roster when he was released. That size made him at least a candidate to push for the nose tackle job in camp, especially with that spot sitting open since Khyiris Tonga left in March to sign with the Chiefs as an unrestricted free agent.
He was always a long shot to stick because of his UDFA status and limited college production, but the Patriots still had reason to take a look. If nothing else, he brought a rare body type to the room. The closest thing New England has left in that mold is Eric Gregory, who checks in at 6-foot-3 and 319 pounds.
With Shaw gone, the Patriots are down to eight defensive tackles on the roster: Milton Williams, Christian Barmore, Cory Durden, Joshua Farmer, Leonard Taylor III, Eric Gregory, Jeremiah Pharms Jr. and David Blay Jr.
The top of that group is pretty clear. Williams and Barmore are the starting duo and, as the source of the Patriots’ interior strength, one of the better pairs in the league. Durden also looks like a real part of the plan after working as a part-time DT3 in 2025 and heading into his second season in the system with a bigger opportunity in front of him.
There’s no cap ripple from the move, either. Shaw signed a standard three-year UDFA deal after his minicamp workout, but the contract came without guarantees.
That left him with a $885,000 cap hit made up entirely of non-guaranteed base salary, and because of the NFL’s Top 51 rule, his presence had already counted as a net $0 against the Patriots’ cap. Waiving him changes nothing there.
Per Miguel Benzan, New England still has $34.2 million in cap room heading into camp.
The release also leaves the Patriots at 90 players, counting roster-exempt international player Lorenz Metz. So the roster has an open spot a week before camp begins, and the next move will be worth watching.
Head coach Mike Vrabel hinted last month that tight end could be the position to watch.
“I think just from a numbers standpoint in camp, I think that’s somewhere we’ll probably have to evaluate the numbers,” Vrabel said at last month’s mandatory minicamp. “There’s 90 guys, 91 guys on every team. So, we’ll just have to take a look at that, but I would say that’s probably somewhere where we would have to address.”
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