Patriots releasing veteran S Peppers, source says

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The New England Patriots have released veteran safety Jabrill Peppers, a surprising shake-up on the back end of their defense, the team announced Friday.

Peppers, who was in his ninth NFL season and fourth in New England, had $4.32 million guaranteed remaining on his contract for this season.

The Patriots finished training camp with sixth-year veteran Jaylinn Hawkins and 2025 fourth-round pick Craig Woodson as their top safeties, with Peppers, Kyle Dugger and Dell Pettus next on the depth chart.

Peppers, 29, was a favorite of former coaches Bill Belichick and Jerod Mayo for his hard-hitting, physical style of play, especially against the run -- a similar skill set to Dugger's. Peppers' fit in the scheme employed by first-year coach Mike Vrabel was evolving over the course of training camp, as he began on the first unit before being surpassed by Hawkins and Woodson in recent weeks.

In the team's preseason finale Aug. 21, Peppers started in a game when most players who had secured roster spots were rested. That was the first indication his place on the team wasn't locked in.

The 5-foot-11, 217-pound Peppers has played in 99 career games (85 starts) with 494 tackles, 5.5 sacks and 7 interceptions.