FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots have released veteran center Russell Bodine the team announced Friday.
The release comes one week after the Patriots traded a sixth-round draft choice to acquire Bodine from the Buffalo Bills.
The Patriots re-signed center James Ferentz to fill Bodine’s spot. That is a reflection of the Patriots seeking a player who is more familiar with the team’s system for Sunday’s season opener against the Steelers. Ferentz was with the team in training camp and all of 2018, and is more ready to step in should center Ted Karras be injured.
The Patriots placed starting center David Andrews on season-ending injured reserve with blood clots in his lungs, which led them to acquire Bodine.
Because Bodine was on the Patriots’ roster after Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, he will still receive a Week 1 paycheck from the Patriots. But if he returns to the team at some point after Sunday’s game, his contract won’t be fully guaranteed as it would have been if he was on the roster after 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Bodine, who has 74 career starts, was scheduled to earn a base salary of $1.9 million in 2019.
Karras, a 2016 sixth-round pick, has five career starts.