(Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
The New England Patriots made an early surprising roster cut this week when they decided to release veteran wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster just one year after he signed a three-year, $25 million deal last offseason.
First-year head coach Jerod Mayo recently revealed why the team decided to make such a controversial move so early into training camp, and his reasoning certainly makes sense.
Patriots insider Mike Kadlick shared a clip of Mayo explaining to the media why the team decided to move on prematurely from JuJu, and he said: “It was a decision between Eliot (Wolf) and myself to really give the younger guys an opportunity to show what they can do.”
Jerod Mayo on the #Patriots decision to release JuJu Smith-Schuster:
“It was a decision between Eliot and myself to really give the younger guys an opportunity to show what they can do.” pic.twitter.com/Pve42tB5A1
— Mike Kadlick (@mikekadlick) August 11, 2024
A pair of rookie wide receivers have been reportedly turning heads at Patriots camp in second-round pick Ja’Lynn Polk out of Washington and fourth-rounder Javon Baker out of UCF, which combined with JuJu reportedly dropping a number of passes in camp and his large contract relative to his recent production, it makes sense why the Pats would want to lean towards the younger guys.
It wasn’t long ago when JuJu was one of those younger receivers pushing veterans out of his way, but at the ripe old age of 27, his career hasn’t gone the way many thought it would following the early-career dominance he experienced with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Someone will likely take a chance on Smith-Schuster, but for now, the Patriots are rebuilding and ushering in a youth movement that doesn’t include him.
It will be fun to see what the rookies can do with more targets, and hopefully, JuJu can catch on somewhere soon and bounce back.
The post Jerod Mayo Reveals Why The Team Released JuJu Smith-Schuster appeared first on The Cold Wire.