Overview

• Peppers, 29, was released after making the initial 53-man roster and projecting as a starter, with ESPN first reporting the move.
• He has $4.32 million guaranteed remaining this season from a 2024 extension; the cut creates about $2.45 million in cap space and roughly $4 million in dead money, per reports.
• Coaches favored Hawkins and fourth-round pick Woodson late in camp, and Peppers’ preseason-finale start signaled his slide on the depth chart.
• New England’s safety group now features Hawkins, Woodson, Kyle Dugger, Dell Pettus and core special teamer Brenden Schooler.
• Peppers played six games in 2024 due to injury and time on the commissioner’s exempt list following an arrest before being acquitted, and his exit continues the team’s broader youth-and-culture reset under the new regime.