Not long after Ronald Darby went from offseason free agent signing to retiree, Wes Schweitzer is traveling the same path. The Patriots placed the offseason pickup on their reserve/retired list Tuesday.
Assuming this is it for the veteran offensive lineman, he will close his NFL service with nine seasons of work spent in Atlanta, Washington and New York. Following his two Jets seasons, Schweitzer signed a one-year deal worth $1.56MM in mid-March. The Patriots pact included just $150K guaranteed.
A 62-game starter, Schweitzer played in only 10 contests with the Jets (on a two-year, $5MM deal) over the past two seasons. The 2025 season would have been an age-32 campaign for Schweitzer, who managed to become an NFL regular as a sixth-round Falcons draftee out of a mid-major program. He had been competing for a guard spot during the Pats’ offseason program, as the team signed Garrett Bradbury to take over at center.
Schweitzer brought experience at center but spent most of his NFL days at guard. The San Jose State alum surpassed the 300-snap mark at both center (2021) and right guard (’22) with Washington, doing so after splitting time (nearly 1,000 snaps) at left and right guard for the 2020 Washington squad that made the playoffs at 7-9. Schweitzer had signed a three-year, $13.5MM Washington contract in 2020; that became his most notable NFL agreement, one he played out.
The Falcons, however, served as the most notable stop for Schweitzer. Drafting him 195th overall in 2016, Atlanta did not use him in a game during its Super Bowl LI season but deployed him as a full-time starter in Year 2. Schweitzer started 16 games at right guard during the Falcons’ most recent playoff season (2017) and made 33 more starts with Atlanta until his rookie contract expired. Pro Football Focus graded Schweitzer as a top-20 guard in 2020, as the Falcons paired him with first-rounder Chris Lindstrom, helping to command that free agency accord.
Schweitzer landed on IR in both Jets seasons, with the 2023 season featuring two such placements (and two return designations). This came after a concussion keyed a 2022 IR trip in Washington. A hand injury sent Schweitzer to IR before Week 1 last year, and he missed three months. A late-season activation from IR commenced. For his career, Schweitzer will retire having earned more than $21MM.