The writing was on the wall for New England Patriots long snapper Joe Cardona.<\/p>\n
The Patriots released Cardona on Tuesday just days after they surprisingly selected his replacement in Vanderbilt\u2019s Julian Ashby<\/a> in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft.<\/p>\n Cardona, 33, was the longest-tenured player on New England\u2019s roster and the Patriots parting ways with him further signals the changing of the guard taking place in Foxboro this offseason. Cardona spent the last 10 seasons with the franchise and was a part of two Super Bowl-winning teams.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you for your commitment and dedication, Joe,\u201d the Patriots posted on their X account<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Patriots drafted Cardona in the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft and the Navy product became a staple of New England\u2019s special teams unit for a decade. Cardona was also lauded for his leadership both on and off the field and was named a captain for the first time last season.<\/p>\n Story continues below advertisement<\/p>\n According to ESPN\u2019s Mike Reiss<\/a>, Cardona \u201csaid his goodbyes to teammates over the last day or so\u201d as the Patriots make another change at the start of the Mike Vrabel era.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Cardona is hardly the only longtime veteran to leave New England this offseason. The Patriots also released David Andrews<\/a> and Ja\u2019Whaun Bentley while Jonathan Jones and Deatrich Wise Jr. both departed in free agency.<\/p>\n The Patriots currently don\u2019t have anyone on their roster who was on the team when they last won a Super Bowl.<\/p>\n