Last offseason, the Patriots signed free agent offensive tackle Chukwuma Okorafor as a player they hoped would be a solution along their offensive line.
He instead turned out to be a big problem that ultimately hampered them all season, and it looks like they’re turning the page.
According to multiple reports, the club parted ways with Okorafor on Monday, ending what certainly turned into a contentious and strange situation. After signing him last offseason, the thought behind his addition was that he was an experienced veteran who could at least solidify one side of their line.
He gained the confidence of both the front office and the coaching staff that he could potentially step in at left tackle, with the former Steeler appearing as though he would be a decent stop-gap player up front on their offense.
Instead, after a shaky preseason and a rough outing in the opener where he was in on just 12 snaps, his career in New England fizzled before it ever got started. Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald reported on September 14th, the day before the club’s overtime loss against the Seahawks in Week 2, that Okorafor informed the club he was leaving.
Then-head coach Jerod Mayo told reporters after that game that the two had previously talked that week, and he was hopeful they could work things out.
“I would say I had a conversation with Chukes, and it had nothing to do with football,” said Mayo. “It had everything to do with just checking on him as a man. It was a good conversation. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.”
Whatever discussion they had didn’t yield the results they were likely hoping for with the 26-year-old, and Okorafor ended up being placed on the “exempt/left squad list,” where he remained for the rest of the season.
That led to New England having a fair amount of trial and error along their line last season, with left tackle being a key position where they had issues. Vederian Lowe did a serviceable job stepping in, but he’s more of a depth player and his struggles caused significant problems for both Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye in 2024.
Okorafor’s release removes him from the roster and allows him to seek an opportunity elsewhere, provided someone is willing to take a risk on a player who essentially quit on his former club.
But for now, he’ll simply be added to the list of some strange tenures we’ve seen over the years, with New England still in need of adding depth again at that position this offseason.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
