Mitch Van Vooren was waived by the New England Patriots after the team added veteran offensive lineman Greg Van Roten, a roster move first highlighted by Pats Pulpit that immediately tightens competition at tight end and narrows practice‑squad options. Fans tracking camp battles should care because this alters the math on whether New England carries two or three tight ends into the regular season.
Source: Pats Pulpit — Bernd Buchmasser
“The Patriots parted ways with the tight end after signing offensive lineman Greg Van Roten,” wrote Bernd Buchmasser for Pats Pulpit.
What happened: Mitch Van Vooren waived after Patriots sign Greg Van Roten
The Patriots waived Mitch Van Vooren to clear a roster spot following the signing of veteran lineman Greg Van Roten, per the Pats Pulpit report by Bernd Buchmasser. The move was presented as a straightforward roster adjustment tied to the Van Roten addition and came after New England’s preseason opener.
Van Vooren’s preseason usage and why the move makes sense
Through the preseason opener, Mitch Van Vooren had extremely limited usage. He saw just three offensive snaps and two special-teams snaps against the Colts and did not register any statistics that night, a usage pattern Buchmasser noted as emblematic of Van Vooren’s uphill battle to make the roster.
Van Vooren’s contract was a one-year deal consisting entirely of a non‑guaranteed $885,000 base, and as a first‑year player he earned per‑diem during camp of $2,000 per week. That combination — low cap footprint and scant opportunities on game day — made him a logical roster casualty once the team added a veteran depth piece.
Tight end depth now: who remains and the competition
With Van Vooren gone, New England’s active tight end group is compressed. Below is the current roster picture as presented in the Pats Pulpit piece, followed by a short interpretation of the competition.
The clearest conclusions from the table: Hunter Henry and Eli Raridon are presented as locks, while the other three active tight ends are competing for what could be only one available spot if the team opts to go two deep at the position. Undrafted rookie Tanner Arkin is described as the early frontrunner among the backups despite quieter recent showings.
Roster, practice‑squad and roster‑construction implications
Waiving Van Vooren tightens the window for backup tight ends and shifts the calculus for practice‑squad decisions and 53‑man construction.
- If New England carries two tight ends, one of the active backups will almost certainly be a practice‑squad candidate rather than a 53‑man fixture.
- If the Patriots opt for three tight ends, that reduces a spot elsewhere — often a seventh receiver, an extra interior offensive lineman or a rotational defensive player.
- For players like Jack Westover and C.J. Dippre, the waiver signals the need for standout showings in upcoming preseason snaps to maintain a path to the active roster or to earn a practice‑squad spot.
Contract and cap context: what moved (and what didn’t)
The Pats Pulpit piece notes that Mitch Van Vooren was on a one‑year, non‑guaranteed deal with a $885,000 base, which did not impact the Patriots’ salary cap or Top 51 accounting. The release therefore carries no meaningful cap consequences for New England.
The Van Roten signing does have a reported financial footprint: NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Greg Van Roten agreed to a one‑year deal with a reported $3 million base and play‑time incentives that could push the value toward $4.5 million. These figures are reported by Rapoport and should be treated as claimed numbers rather than an official team disclosure.
What to watch next
Fans should monitor a few specific items over the coming days and weeks:
- Snap counts in the next preseason game — how much live work do backups like Tanner Arkin, Jack Westover and C.J. Dippre receive?
- Practice‑squad announcements after final roster cuts — who signs as insurance if only two tight ends make the 53-man roster?
- The final roster cutdown timeline in late August/early September, when teams trim to their regular‑season roster limits and make final decisions on who stays active at each position.
Source attribution and author note
This analysis is grounded in the Pats Pulpit report by Bernd Buchmasser. The contract figures for Greg Van Roten referenced above were reported by Ian Rapoport of NFL Network and are presented here as reported claims.
Original reporting: What waiving Mitch Van Vooren means for the Patriots — Pats Pulpit by Bernd Buchmasser.
