Offensive tackle Trent Brown will be traded to the New England Patriots at the start of the league year on March 17, per multiple reports.
Pending a physical, Brown is being dealt to the Patriots for the second time in his career — this time from the Las Vegas Raiders — after playing with New England in 2018.
Brown first agreed to a restructured one-year deal worth up to $11 million with incentives, ESPN reported Tuesday.
The 27-year-old was due $13.7 million in 2021 and $15 million in 2022, but the new deal coupled with trading Brown allows the Raiders to recoup nearly $14 million in cap space.
Brown tweeted his reaction to the deal Tuesday, indicating his full approval for a return to New England.
“Money don’t mean s— if you ain’t happy I swear to GOD!!” Brown tweeted Tuesday.
ESPN reported the teams will swap late-round picks in 2022 as part of the deal.
The Patriots are familiar with Brown as a starter for the team’s last Super Bowl squad in 2018 on the heels of being acquired from the San Francisco 49ers.
Two months later, he left in free agency to sign a four-year, $66 million deal with the Raiders. He played in only 16 games in two seasons with the Raiders. General manager Mike Mayock questioned Brown’s drive and his conditioning in a harbinger of what was ahead.
“Trent’s whole thing is when he’s healthy, in shape and ready to go, he’s as dominant as any tackle in football and he proved that early in the 2019 season. Since then, it’s kind of been a roller coaster,” Mayock said last week.
“So really what he needs to do more than anything is get himself in the best shape of his life and come out and prove that he is a dominant tackle in the National Football League, and really that’s all it takes. If Trent gets in shape and stays committed, there’s not a better talent out there.”
The Patriots entered the week with more than $60 million in salary cap space with left guard Joe Thuney, kept via the franchise tag last March, expected to exit and quarterback Cam Newton’s future unclear.
–Field Level Media
