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David Andrews understands, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t disappointed.
The longtime Patriots center is no longer the longtime Patriots center, one of the last ties to the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick era, after his release last week.
Andrews knew it was a possibility — one that he openly acknowledged at his end-of-season availability with media — and yet still, the call that essentially was his pink slip caught him off-guard.
“You’re a little shocked by it,” Andrew said on his “Quick Snap” podcast on Wednesday. “But … I’ve been so blessed. I’ve had 10 years and never got fired. I was living a pipe dream that I would hopefully make the decision myself. What did Bill [Belichick] say? ‘There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, and you’re hoping it’s not a train.’ I was hoping it wasn’t a train, and it was a train.
“But like I said, I respect their decision.”
Andrews had played in 124 regular-season games since 2015 with the Patriots, served as a captain and won two Super Bowls. But he knew his body had begun to betray him, held to four games last season before electing to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery.
He could have attempted to play through the torn rotator cuff and postponed surgery until the offseason, but he did not feel he could help the team with his shoulder in such a condition and felt he might not have been able to play at all in 2025.
The 32-year-old was hoping for a chance to show the new regime, featuring head coach Mike Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, that he still could play — a chance he will not get with the Patriots.
“I made that [surgery] decision knowing that this is a possibility, especially with a new staff coming in,” Andrews said. “Even if Jerod [Mayo] was there, it could be a possibility. The football team’s got to make a decision that they think is best.”
The Patriots moved on by signing former Vikings center Garrett Bradbury to a two-year, $12 million deal.
Andrews is not sure of his next step, neither announcing a retirement nor an intention to continue for a 10th NFL season with another team.
“Still love the organization, still love the community. We’re still here,” Andrews said of New England. “We don’t have any plans to make any drastic moves right now, just depending on different situations. It is home right now.”
