The New England Patriots have started addressing their 14-player free agency class, with the first decision involving cornerback Alex Austin. A restricted free agent, Austin will reportedly not be tendered by the team ahead of next Wednesday’s deadline. As a result, he is headed for the open market.
What does the decision mean for the Patriots? Let’s assess.
Unsurprising move
In our free agency profile series, we predicted that Austin would not receive a tender for a simple reason: the cost associated with even the lowest
one available was too high for what he showed during the 2025 season. The 24-year-old, lest we forget, lost his position as the fourth cornerback early and was a non-factor on defense the rest of the season.
The Patriots investing at least $3.52 million in Austin to keep him from entering free agency was therefore never a realistic possibility.
Nothing set in stone
Even though Austin is now scheduled to test free agency next week, he is not an automatic departure from the team. The Patriots, after all, could still bring him back on a contract more in line with his projected role in 2026.
What could such a deal look like? It is clear that it will not reach the levels of the restricted free agency tender the team just declined to employ, and it might not even come close. In fact, it appears more likely that a deal, should it transpire, would end up somewhere around the $1.15 million minimum for a player of his experience.
Of course, all of that is speculation right now. The bottom line remains the same, though, namely that the door on a return does not necessarily have to be closed even with no tender being applied by the Patriots.
Cornerback depth in the spotlight
Despite Austin’s return not entirely ruled out, him at least entering the market puts the spotlight on the cornerback depth chart. As of right now, after all, the depth behind the projected top 3 is unproven.
53-man roster (7): Christian Gonzalez (0), Carlton Davis III (7), Marcus Jones (25 | PR), Charles Woods (22), Kobee Minor (19), Marcellas Dial Jr. (27), Brandon Crossley (46)
Restricted free agent (1): Alex Austin (28)
The trio of Christian Gonzalez, Carlton Davis and Marcus Jones is one of the best in football and still fairly young: Gonzalez is 23, Davis 29 and Jones 27. That said, Davis’ future beyond 2026 in particular is unclear, while Charles Woods, Kobee Minor, Marcellas Dial Jr. and Brandon Crossley have yet to show they are ready for increased roles at the backup level.
New England adding some more talent to the mix challenging for the CB4 role and other backup spots should be expected to happen this spring, and especially so if Austin indeed departs.
7 tender decisions left
Austin entered the offseason as one of eight Patriots in either the restricted or exclusive rights free agency categories. The others were quarterback Tommy DeVito, offensive tackle Yasir Durant, defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy and linebacker Jack Gibbens as the RFAs as well as running back Deneric Prince, fullback Jack Westover and defensive tackle Isaiah Iton as the ERFAs.
Unlike Austin, those remaining six have yet to be informed of their fate. What will happen remains to be seen, but our projection is that Westover and Iton are fairly safe bets to be tendered, with Gibbens a potential candidate as well.
The Patriots have until next Wednesday, Mar. 11 at 3:59 p.m. ET to use the tenders available to keep any qualifying players from the market.
