New England Patriots head coach, Mike Vrabel, looking on during the third quarter of the game against the Cleveland Browns on October 26, 2025.
Getty
New England Patriots head coach, Mike Vrabel, looking on during the third quarter of the game against the Cleveland Browns on October 26, 2025.
Don’t blink! The New England Patriots are busy this Tuesday night. Less than an hour ago, the team announced that they would be sending edge rusher Keion White to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a sixth round pick (read full details here). Now, 39 minutes later, the Patriots announce a deal being done with the Pittsburgh Steelers that sees Kyle Dugger sent away for yet another sixth round pick.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter announced the move at 7:24 PM Tuesday night.
Adam Schefter
Trade: New England is sending safety Kyle Dugger and a 7th-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a 6th-round pick, per sources.
This is New England’s second trade today. It also sent edge Keion White and a 7th-round pick to the 49ers for a 6th-round pick.
The former second round pick was considered a draft blunder in former head coach Bill Belichick’s long line of NFL Draft missteps. But it wasn’t until previous head coach Jerrod Mayo botched Dugger’s contract negotiations that the 29-year-old safety became a real thorn in New England’s side.
Kyle Dugger’s Terrible Contract
Kyle Dugger is a good football player, there is no doubt about it. But is he the 12th best safety in the entire National Football League? Well, his contract would suggest he is.
After posting 109 tackles and two interceptions in the fourth and final year of Dugger’s rookie contract, former head coach Jerrod Mayo decided to extend the promising captain.
The deal the two worked out was a four year, 58 million dollar contract that keeps the former 37th overall selection from Division II Len-Rhyne under contract until 2027.
Well that deal aged poorly immediately when Dugger ate up $15 million in cap space, appearing in just 13 games and captaining a four win football team for a second consecutive year.
Fast forward to 2025, the coach that drafted you is fired and the coach that extended you is too. Dugger finds himself on the practice squad as he fought through all of training camp hoping just to earn a spot on the team. The player making $14.5 million annually no longer had a spot on the lineup.
Now he goes to Pittsburgh where the 4-3 Steelers will look to make a playoff push in an extremely weak AFC North.