Patriots Cut 3-Time Super Bowl Champ Punter Ryan Allen After Drafting Jake Bailey in 5th Round
By Michael Luciano
The New England Patriots decided to cut bait with a member of their excellent special teams unit that helped win them advance to three four Super Bowls and win three of them.
The Patriots cut Ryan Allen, the two-time former Ray Guy Award winner at Louisiana Tech who has been the punter in New England for the last six seasons.
Breaking: The #Patriots are releasing punter Ryan Allen, per league source. He was with the team for six seasons and won three Super Bowls.
— Jim McBride (@globejimmcbride) August 19, 2019
Where is Zoltan Mesko when you need him?
Allen probably saw the writing on the wall, as the Patriots bucked their trend of left-footed punters and picked Stanford's Jake Bailey in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL draft. Allen's production wasn't at its usual above-average level, as his average of 45.1 yards per punt was dead in the middle of the league at 17th.
The Patriots have informed punter Ryan Allen that they are releasing him, per a source. Fifth-round pick Jake Bailey (Stanford) now the top punter.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) August 19, 2019
Make no mistake, Allen pinning Jared Goff and the Los Angeles Rams deep in their own territory was instrumental in helping the Patriots hold them off and win their sixth Super Bowl. Allen is talented and experienced enough to latch on with a team in need of an upgrade in their special tams unit, but knowing the Patriots, paying him probably wasn't in the cards.