The New England Patriots have made their first major move of the 2024 off-season.
The Patriots have used the transition tag on Kyle Dugger, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.
It’s the first time the Patriots have placed a tag on a player since using it on Joe Thuney in the 2020 off-season.
Earlier in the off-season, the De-facto General manager, Eliot Wolf, talked to the media about his desire to keep Kyle Dugger around.
“In Regards to [Kyle Dugger and Mike Onwenu], we’d love to keep those guys. Those guys are part of our core,” Wolf said.
The transition tag, which is different from the franchise tag, means Kyle Dugger is now on a one-year, $13.5 million deal. The deal essentially means that Kyle Dugger will stay with the Patriots on a one-year contract. The Patriots will have until July 17th to work out a long-term deal.
Dugger, 27, attended a division two school in college: Leonir-Rhyne. He quickly proved he had what it took to play in the NFL and joined the Patriots in 2020 as a second-round draft pick. The 6-foot-2, 222-pounder has appeared in 61 games, totaling 52 starts. In 2023, Dugger played a career-high 98% of the defense snaps, which led the team.
Last season, he started all 17 games and was a major communicator on the defense in the absence of Devin McCourty.
The transition tag is rare; only five players have received a transition tag in the past ten years. The tag provides more leverage for the team in future contract talks about a potential extension.
Since teams can only use one franchise/transfer tag per offseason, the reported move means Mike Onwenu will not receive a tag and will become a free agent.
My name is Ben Belford-Peltzman and I am the creator and writer of The Patriots Beat. I am a 17-year kid who is an optimistic pessimist about the City of Champions. I started The Patriots Beat in August of 2022 and never expected to grow so much but here we are. Feel free to email Thepatriotsbeat@gmail.com with any inquires.
