{"id":43631,"date":"2026-08-14T05:14:32","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T00:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=43631"},"modified":"2026-08-14T05:14:32","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T00:14:32","slug":"former-patriots-quarterback-rips-new-england-over-very-frustrating-exit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=43631","title":{"rendered":"Former Patriots Quarterback Rips New England Over \u2018Very Frustrating\u2019 Exit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Joshua Dobbs understands the business side of the NFL better than most players. Still, the veteran quarterback was not pleased with how the <a href=\"https:\/\/nesn.com\/new-england-patriots\">New England Patriots<\/a> handled his departure.<\/p>\n<p>Dobbs, who recently joined the Detroit Lions, publicly criticized his former team Tuesday while discussing his unusual offseason. New England reportedly hoped to trade the veteran backup before eventually releasing him two weeks after the start of free agency. By then, several teams that could have pursued Dobbs already had filled their backup quarterback openings. That left the 31-year-old waiting for another opportunity and without a team during organized activities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a weird offseason because it was my first time not having OTAs and everything, and that was just by the nature of my situation in New England, with the timing,\u201d Dobbs told reporters. \u201cThat was very frustrating, the way they handled that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was a blunt assessment from a player who has experienced nearly every form of roster uncertainty during his NFL career.<\/p>\n<h2>Patriots\u2019 Timing Put Joshua Dobbs In Difficult Position<\/h2>\n<p>The Patriots\u2019 decision to move on from Dobbs was not particularly surprising. New England already had Drake Maye entrenched as its franchise quarterback, and Dobbs was not viewed as a necessary part of the team\u2019s long-term plans. The frustration appears to come from when the organization released him, not the decision itself.<\/p>\n<p>The beginning of free agency is when teams quickly address their most pressing needs. Backup quarterback jobs might not create the same headlines as major starting roles, but they can disappear just as quickly. New England apparently wanted to see whether it could receive something in return for Dobbs. When no trade materialized, the Patriots released him after some of his potential landing spots had moved in other directions.<\/p>\n<p>Dobbs\u2019 comments suggest he believes the delay limited his market and prevented him from participating in a normal offseason program. For a quarterback, those missed practices can be especially significant. Joining a new offense requires learning unfamiliar terminology, establishing timing with receivers and developing trust with the coaching staff.<\/p>\n<p>Dobbs continued training independently while waiting for his next opportunity, but individual work cannot completely replace organized team repetitions.<\/p>\n<h2>Dobbs Is Familiar With NFL Uncertainty<\/h2>\n<p>Few quarterbacks have traveled a more winding path than Dobbs. The former Tennessee standout began his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers and has since spent time with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns, Tennessee Titans, Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco 49ers and Patriots. He also previously had a stint with Detroit.<\/p>\n<p>Dobbs became one of the NFL\u2019s most compelling stories during the 2023 season. The Vikings acquired him from Arizona after Kirk Cousins suffered a season-ending Achilles injury, and Dobbs memorably helped Minnesota beat the Atlanta Falcons only days after arriving. His ability to learn offenses quickly earned him the \u201cPasstronaut\u201d nickname, a reference to his aerospace engineering background.<\/p>\n<p>That extensive experience also gives Dobbs a clear understanding of how NFL transactions work. He acknowledged that players get released and teams make decisions based on their own interests. His issue with New England was the process. Dobbs knows what it feels like to be traded, released and asked to prepare on short notice. For him to publicly describe the Patriots\u2019 handling of the situation as frustrating makes the criticism more notable.<\/p>\n<p><strong>MORE<\/strong>:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/nesn.com\/new-england-patriots\/news\/patriots-star-christian-gonzalez-receives-massive-nfl-honor-amid-contract-uncertainty\/dcc84d8ea89c3c2c0630cc77\">Patriots star Christian Gonzalez receives massive NFL honor amid contract uncertainty<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Lions Give Dobbs His Next Opportunity<\/h2>\n<p>Dobbs now gets another chance with Detroit, where he can provide experience and mobility behind the Lions\u2019 starting quarterback. His arrival gives Detroit a proven veteran who has made regular-season starts and repeatedly demonstrated an ability to absorb new systems under difficult circumstances. That skill should help him make up for some of the valuable offseason time he lost.<\/p>\n<p>The Patriots, meanwhile, probably will not lose much sleep over the criticism. Teams routinely hold onto players while exploring trades, even when doing so can shrink the player\u2019s options elsewhere.<\/p>\n<p>However, Dobbs\u2019 comments provide a reminder that there is a human cost attached to those roster calculations. New England was within its rights to search for a trade. Dobbs was equally justified in being unhappy about the way it affected his offseason. The veteran quarterback has moved forward, but he clearly has not forgotten how his Patriots tenure ended.<\/p>\n<h3>More Patriots<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Joshua Dobbs understands the business side of the NFL better than most players. Still, the veteran quarterback was not pleased with how the New England Patriots handled his departure. Dobbs, who recently joined the Detroit Lions, publicly criticized his former team Tuesday while discussing his unusual offseason. New England reportedly hoped to trade the veteran&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43632,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/library.sportingnews.com\/styles\/crop_style_16_9_1200_webp\/s3\/2026-08\/2026-08-10T155817Z_1778032487_MT1USATODAY29552156_RTRMADP_3_DETROIT-LIONS-QUARTERBACK-JOSH-DOBBS-6-WALKS-ON-TO-THE.JPG.webp?itok=wYTpmmNs","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43631","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-trending-viral-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=43631"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43631\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/43632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=43631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=43631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=43631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}