A Reunion With Trey Flowers Should Be Worth Exploring For The New England Patriots

Three years after Trey Flowers departed from the New England Patriots, the defensive end finds himself on the doorstep of free agency once again.

The Detroit Lions have informed Flowers that he will be released when the 2022 league year opens at 4 p.m. ET next Wednesday, as Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reported. The impending move will net general manager Brad Holmes’ organization north of $12 million in dead money and north of $10 million in cap space.

And a move back to the familiar should be worth exploring.

Before Flowers agreed to terms on a five-year, $90 million contract carrying $56 million guaranteed back in March 2019, the Arkansas product had earned a $1.907 million base salary in the final year of his rookie pact with New England. A place on the franchise’s All-Decade team was earned in the process.

The work against the pass matched the work against the run. Both were equal parts in what became disciplined disruption from first down through third down.

“Trey works extremely hard, as we know,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said during a 2018 press conference. “He’s one of the hardest-working guys on the team — running game, passing game, his physical development and maintenance in terms of getting treatment and taking care of himself. … He’s a very versatile and valuable player for us.”

Across 55 games between his regular seasons and postseasons with New England, the 6-foot-2, 265-pound Flowers made 46 starts.

There were 203 tackles, including 33 for loss, to go with 26.5 sacks and 81 quarterback hits totaled. Along the way came a handful of forced fumbles and a pair of fumble recoveries.

Injuries limited the carryover in Detroit.

Flowers started 27 of his 29 appearances and finished with back-to-back stints on injured reserve due to a forearm fracture and a lingering knee issue. He recorded 97 tackles, including a dozen for loss, to go with 10.5 sacks during his stay. Also logged were 27 quarterback hits, five forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.

A switch to 3-4 outside linebacker arrived last campaign. That switch reached its end after 304 defensive snaps for the team captain and Ed Block Courage Award recipient.

Now with the No. 2 and No. 32 overall picks in April’s NFL draft, head coach Dan Campbell’s Lions will continue in the developmental direction.

Per OverTheCap.com, Flowers had cap numbers exceeding $23 million in the final two years of his deal with Detroit. It’s a roster that the two-time Super Bowl champion initially joined during the tenures of former Patriots director of pro scouting Bob Quinn and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia.

The latter of whom now resides back in Foxborough. The recently-released Kyle Van Noy and fellow linebacker Jamie Collins both reunited with the defense this past season, as well.

With the Patriots currently holding $10.205 million in cap space, according to PatsCap’s Miguel Benzan, time will tell whether Flowers follows the same path.

The front’s pass rush is now led by Matthew Judon and Christian Barmore. And in their inaugural years together, Pro Football Focus charted the perennial Pro Bowler off the edge and the rookie in the middle for a combined 115 pressures. But additional support will be looked to alongside them.

The window remains open for recent selections in Chase Winovich, Josh Uche and Ronnie Perkins to provide it. Flowers, who won’t factor into the compensatory formula once released, could do the same if the finances align with the fit.

Pick No. 101 overall from the 2015 draft is set to turn 29 in August.