Patriots Cut Albert Haynesworth, Confirm What We Already Knew About DT

Boston Herald reporter Ian R. Rapoport broke the news first: The New England Patriots have decided to waive troublesome defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, who was currently in the middle of his first (and now only) year with his new team.

What's only surprising about this move is that the Patriots didn't do it sooner. After Haynesworth joined the team this offseason, he was off and on the practice and playing field, with a back injury marring his attempt at a redemptive comeback.

Once he did take the field, however, he didn't do much to impress either fans or his coaches, racking up just three tackles and no sacks in his six games.

Hayneworth's underperformance is nothing new, however. In his time with the Washington Redskins, where he spent two seasons, he did little more than complain about the system not playing to his strengths, his reduced role in the defense as compared to his work in Tennessee with the Titans and the intelligence of Washington's coaching staff.

Clearly, the Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick hoped to work the magic they are known for with Haynesworth, returning him to the fearsome, dominant form that commanded that $100 million payday back in 2009.

Instead, it's just been more of the same. While the Patriots, as an organization, is fairly hush-hush about internal matters when it comes to media disclosure, it's not hard to imagine Haynesworth being a troublemaker in New England's locker room as he was with the Redskins.

Rapoport, again, noted that Haynesworth engaged in a shouting match with Patriots defensive line coach Pepper Johnson in during the team's Week 9 game against the New York Giants, and was benched for the fourth quarter.

Whether that benching was a result of the altercation or was, as Coach Belichick put it, a matter of the rotation, is up in the air. However, it could not have helped Haynesworth's chances to remain on the team.

Considering that the Patriots made this move after the argument and Hayneworth's subsequent benching, this hints at the team leaning toward parting ways with the disappointing malcontent for some time.

And who can blame them? Clearly, the more shocking move in this whole saga was that the Patriots were willing to sign Haynesworth, given his very public history as a selfish player, not that they decided to give him the boot.

Surely, Belichick and company knew what they were getting into when they brought him onto the team, and with how poorly he has played thus far, it's a wonder what they saw in the defensive tackle to begin with that warranted his signing.

Haynesworth isn't capable of returning to the caliber of play that made him famous with the Titans; he's so far removed from being that person, it's hard to even assume he's willing to put forth the kind of effort that quality of play requires.

Indeed, his release proves that there are players out there that even the venerable Belichick cannot turn around, despite any and every effort to do so.

Haynesworth had a number of chances to prove himself this season, probably more than any other player on that team, but those chances have run out. And now the doubly-damaged Haynesworth must see if another team will take him, and everything he brings with him, into its locker room.