The Duke Dawson era with the Pats was a short one.
According to a source, the Patriots have traded Dawson, their 2018 second-round pick, to the Denver Broncos. The Pats ended up selling pennies on the dollar, according to ESPN, acquiring a 2020 sixth-rounder for the cornerback and a 2020 seventh-round pick.
The Patriots have a long list of misses when it comes to drafting defensive backs in the second round. Dawson is arguably the biggest, falling in line with the likes Ras-I Dowling, Cyrus Jones, Jordan Richards, Tavon Wilson, Darius Butler and Terrence Wheatley. Last year, Dawson became the first second-round pick under Bill Belichick to not play a single game with the Patriots during his rookie season.
The cornerback fell behind early, suffering a hamstring injury at the end of the 2018 training camp. He started the season on the injured reserve, but came off the IR later in the season. Dawson, however, never saw the field.
This summer, Dawson entered an extremely crowded and talented cornerback competition. He quickly fell behind veterans Stephon Gilmore, Jason McCourty and Jonathan Jones. On top of that, he fell behind two members of his 2018 rookie class _ undrafted free agent J.C. Jackson and seventh-rounder Keion Crossen. To make matters even more difficult for Dawson, the Patriots drafted cornerback JoeJuan Williams in the second round this past April.
Dawson seemed to lose out in a roster competition directly with Crossen, who profiles as a slot cornerback and core special teamer. On Thursday, Dawson had an interception to go with three tackles and three pass deflections. Crossen, meanwhile, had an interception to go with 12 tackles and five pass breakups against the New York Giants.
With Dawson traded, the Patriots will likely keep six cornerbacks on their opening 53-man roster: Gilmore, McCourt, Jones, Jackson, Crossen and Williams.
The NFL Network was the first to report the Dawson trade.
