Patriots head coach details real reason for releasing veteran receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster

It has been very apparent throughout training camp that veteran wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster has been struggling. And the biggest question was whether or not he was going to make the roster when the team had to do final cuts.

But Mayo had seen enough and made the final decision after the team's first preseason game.

On Friday, the team released the receiver, and on Sunday, Mayo discussed the real reason for it.

"Yeah, it was a decision between Eliot (Wolf) and myself, really to give the younger guys an opportunity to go out there and get more reps and show what they can do," Mayo explained.

Smith-Schuster was not at 100% last season during his first season with the Patriots, dealing with a knee injury. So that was said to contribute to his lack of production. But when speaking with reporters this offseason, he said he was completely healthy and ready to go.

Because of that, Mayo was asked if his inability to truly bounce back from the injury factored into the decision.

"I mean, that’s part of it. At the same time, we just want him to get healthy," the head coach said. "He still has some good ball left in him and I wish him nothing but the best."

Last season, Smith-Schuster played in 11 games, totaling 29 catches for 260 yards and one touchdown.

But the bigger issue with releasing the veteran was his contract. So let's get into all that.

Financial ramifications make JuJu Smith-Schuster's release from the Patriots surprising (via Wendell Ferreira)

The New England Patriots decided that JuJu Smith-Schuster's tenure is over and released the veteran wide receiver on Friday, ending what is certainly an underwhelming experience . More than the cut itself, the contract repercussions are what make this move so surprising.

Last offseason, JuJu signed a three-year, $25 million deal with the Patriots. It could go to $33 million via incentives. But the main point is that it had $16 million in guaranteed money — a $7.9 million signing bonus, plus the base salaries in 2023 ($1.1 million) and 2024 ($7 million).

It means that even cutting Smith-Schuster, the Patriots still owe him $7 million, and it will hit the salary cap this year anyway. The decision to release him only freed up $647k in cap space, which is his per-game roster bonus. New England will handle $10.28 million in dead money in 2024.

The Patriots will still have $2.633 million in dead money in 2025, the final proration of his signing bonus paid in 2023. The decision makes more financial sense thinking about next year, though, because it opens up $7.5 million in cap space.