BREAKING NEWS: Michael Bennett Traded to the Dallas Cowboys

The New England Patriots aren’t done wheeling and dealing yet. After bringing in Mohamed Sanu and sending Josh Gordon to the IR (and he’ll likely be waived when he’s healthy again), they just let defensive end Michael Bennett go after he requested to be let go due to his dissatisfaction with his role in the Patriots defense. Bennett was sent to the Dallas Cowboys for a seventh-round pick that could potentially become a sixth-round pick in 2021 depending on the defensive end’s play.

Bennett was acquired by New England this offseason and many assumed he would be trying to fill the role that was vacated by Trey Flowers–who signed with the Detroit Lions in free agency this offseason. However, thanks to the play and versatility of the Patriots’ linebackers the team has been playing with less down linemen, oftentimes aligning in a 2-4-5 formation.

His frustration boiled over a couple of weeks ago when he got into an argument with New England’s defensive line coach, Brett Bielema, which resulted in his suspension for Week 7.

When asked about his return to the team on Wednesday Bennett said, “I didn’t take away nothing. I got suspended. Lost money. What am I supposed to take away from that? There’s no love lost. It’s just how it is.”

One day later he’s on to a new team. Without him, New England managed to shutout the New York Jets on the road so they are unlikely to see a big decline from the league’s best defense. In Dallas, he gives the Cowboys another pass rusher to help shore up a rotation that features DeMarcus Lawrence and Robert Quinn who left last week’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night with a rib injury.