New England Patriots Clear Close To $5 Million With Kyle Van Noy’s Reported Release

The New England Patriots will enter the 2022 league year without Kyle Van Noy.

The organization released the veteran linebacker on Monday in a move that clears close to $5 million against the salary cap, as first reported by Field Yates of ESPN.

Van Noy had returned to the Patriots on a two-year, $12 million contract last March. The two-time Super Bowl champion, who turns 31 later this month, garnered $6 million guaranteed as part of the agreement.

According to PatsCap’s Miguel Benzan, New England now carries north of $9.5 million in cap room with star cornerback J.C. Jackson as well as fellow linebackers Dont’a Hightower, Ja’Whaun Bentley and Jamie Collins all scheduled for unrestricted free agency.

The NFL’s legal tampering window opens at 12 p.m. ET on March 14. The league year follows at 4 p.m. ET on March 16. Van Noy will be eligible to sign elsewhere ahead of it.

After being released by the Miami Dolphins one year into a four-year, $51 million pact, Van Noy appeared in 16 games and made eight starts last regular season. The Brigham Young product finished with 66 tackles, five sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, ten passes defended and an interception returned for a touchdown.

“It’s good to have Kyle back,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said of Van Noy last September. “Kyle’s a productive player for us. He’s versatile. He does a lot of different things and can play multiple positions defensively. So that gives him a lot of value and gives us some versatility that’s always good in defending the different types of offensive systems that we go up against.”

From the edges to off the ball, the 6-foot-3, 250-pound Van Noy went on to play 75% of the snaps in 2021. That rate ranked behind only three-time Pro Bowler Matthew Judon along New England’s defensive front.

The linebacker room stands with Judon, Chase Winovich, Josh Uche, Jahlani Tavai, Harvey Langi, Raekwon McMillan, Terez Hall, Anfernee Jennings, Ronnie Perkins and Cameron McGrone under contract for 2022. The latter five did not play in a game last campaign while residing on injured reserve, physically unable to perform as well as the non-football injury list.

Van Noy’s upcoming cap number of $7.39 million ranked ninth on New England’s roster and nets $2.45 million in dead money, per OverTheCap.com.

The Patriots originally acquired the former second-round draft pick from the Detroit Lions leading up to the 2016 NFL trade deadline as the rights No. 215 and No. 239 overall changed hands. His initial tenure in Foxborough spanned 52 games, including playoffs, and ended as a member of the franchise’s latest All-Decade team.