The list of Patriots players who have retired from the 2020 NFL season is longer than any team: Marcus Cannon, Dont’a Hightower, Patrick Chung, Matt LaCosse, Brandon Bolden, Dan Vitale, Marqise Lee and Najee Toran.
The losses of those players, especially Hightower, Chung and even LaCosse, have actually damaged New England during the season, but most, if not all, of those players can play for the Patriots again in 2021, according to Greg Bedard of the Boston Sports Journal.
Here’s an excerpt from the Boston Sports Journal episode of the Boston Bedard Patriots Podcast:
“From what I’ve heard, chances are Marcus Cannon will come back; I’m not even sure that gives him a place on the list,” Bedard said. «. . . What I have heard is that all abandonment is largely positive, that everyone returns . . . And I don’t have that response from everyone, however, my resources imply that there has been a lot of positive discussion about everyone’s return. “
As Bédard alluded to, the fact that a Patriots player needs to return for the 2021 season does not secure him a place on the list. There is also cash to consider, it is an absolutely different gap to pass.
However, the Patriots would gain an upper hand in the primaries if they welcomed players like Hightower. Of course, the beginner quarterback is much more important, assuming New England and Cam Newton split from this off-season.