The 2021 New England Patriots draft class certainly doesn’t look any better after the news regarding Joshuah Bledsoe.
The Pittsburgh Steelers released the former Patriots safety on Thursday after signing defensive back Quindell Johnson. Bledsoe signed a futures contract with the Steelers in January in an attempt to revive his NFL career — the 26-year-old had previously joined the UFL’s San Antonio Brahmas.
The Patriots drafted Bledsoe in the sixth round out of Missouri but he struggled with injuries and didn’t play in a single game as rookie. Bledsoe only appeared in four games and made just one tackle over the next two seasons with the Patriots, who had cut Bledsoe prior to the 2023 season before bringing him back on the practice squad.
Bledsoe was still with the Patriots last summer before they parted ways for good at the end of training camp.
While not much was expected out of Bledsoe since he was a sixth-round pick, him falling out of the league again illustrates the problems the Patriots had in recent drafts, especially in 2021. Bledsoe, third-round pick Ronnie Perkins and seventh-round pick Tre Nixon — again, not much to be expected with Nixon — currently don’t have a job in the NFL while Cameron McGrone (fifth-rounder) and William Sherman (sixth-rounder) are fringe roster players with the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos, respectively.
Story continues below advertisement
New England’s first-round pick in 2021 was Mac Jones and after an extremely turbulent tenure with the Patriots, it looks like the signal-caller is destined for backup quarterback life the rest of his NFL career.
The Patriots only hit on two picks from the 2021draft in Christian Barmore (second-rounder) and Rhamondre Stevenson. Both are expected to play key roles for the Patriots this season, but Barmore’s health is a big question after he missed all but four games in 2024 due to blood clots.
