The Patriots lost another waiver claim this week, finishing second in the priority pecking order for Jonah Laulu, the former Raiders defensive tackle. Six teams—New England, Tennessee, Miami, Houston, Indianapolis, and the Jets—all threw in bids for the 26-year-old, but the Patriots' superior record cost them. It's a brutal reminder of what winning does to your roster flexibility in October.
This one stings a little because the defensive line is legitimately a need. Mike Vrabel's staff has Dre'Mont Jones and Niko Lalos rotating at end, but the interior is crowded with bodies that haven't separated themselves—Jeremiah Pharms Jr., DaQuan Jones, Joshua Farmer, and a deep bench of others. Laulu isn't a marquee name, but he's been around. Adding even league-average production at DT shouldn't require working through six competing teams. The Patriots do have options, sure. But you don't put in waiver claims unless you think there's genuine value to grab.
Here's the frustration: being good enough to have a winning record but not good enough to keep your roster flexible is a particular kind of purgatory. You're competitive, so you can't tank. But you're not built to contend, so every missed waiver opportunity feels like a slow leak rather than a dramatic hole. The Jets claiming Laulu—ahead of the Patriots—is particularly salt-in-the-wound stuff. You're both in the same AFC East conference; now you're losing out to division rivals on mid-tier pass rushers.
Eliot Wolf and the front office will need to find their DL help somewhere else. The trade deadline is still live. Free agency will continue to churn. But this particular miss illustrates how hard it is to build on the fly when your record has already dictated your draft position and waiver priority. Winning games is good. Winning games that also happen to align with roster construction is better. Right now, the Patriots are stuck in between.