New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots are cutting ties with one of their training camp standouts, according to multiple reports.
“The #Patriots are waiving CB D.J. James today, per his agents Joe DiBenedetto and Andy Simms,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero posted on X. “A sixth-round pick by Seattle last year, James spent most of his rookie season with New England and was a training camp star this summer. Now, he’s headed to waivers.”
“Sources confirms the Patriots are releasing cornerback DJ James,” MassLive’s Mark Daniels wrote on X. “This surprises me. I thought he played well in camp. We’ll see what it means for the cornerback depth chart moving forward.”
The Seattle Seahawks waived cornerback D.J. James last August, four months after selecting him in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
The Patriots signed James to their practice squad last September, but the Alabama native didn’t appear in any games.
James made his NFL debut in Week 1 against the Las Vegas Raiders, playing just two defensive snaps and five more on special teams. James made one tackle in the 20-13 defeat but had a solid summer with New England.
“James was one of New England’s stars during training camp. The cornerback took first-team reps this summer when the Patriots were forced to dig into their cornerback depth due to injuries,” Daniels and Lauren Campbell of MassLive wrote in a report on Tuesday.
Daniels and Campbell speculated that the reported move could signal an “imminent return” for injured star cornerback Christian Gonzalez, though that’s “unclear.” It could also mean the team plans on calling up fellow cornerback Corey Ballentine from the practice squad, per the report.
Ballentine made his Patriots debut in Week 1 but was limited to 20 snaps on special teams and made one tackle.
