Josh Uche is once again the subject of trading speculation as the November 5 deadline approaches. With uncertainty surrounding his future, he was inactive for the Patriots’ Week 8 contest.

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“It was just a healthy scratch and our goal is also to field the best team out there that gives us the best chance to win.” Head coach Jerod Mayo said when addressing the decision (via Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald).

Unsurprisingly, Uche is attracting commercial interest. That was the case last year as well, and the Patriots were close to negotiating a deal that would have sent him to a new team for the remainder of his rookie contract. Instead, the former second-rounder stayed in New England before signing a one-year deal to keep him through 2024. Uche had appeared in the Patriots’ first seven games and recorded two sacks and five pressures.

It will be interesting to see if the Michigan product’s banking is an indication that a trade is in the works. As Kyed notes, Uche is considered New England’s top trade candidate due to his status as an impending free agent who wouldn’t be expensive to acquire. His base salary for the year is just $1.3 million, so almost any team in the league could easily absorb the prorated remainder of that amount in a trade.

Uche had a strong season in 2022 with 11.5 sacks, but he hasn’t developed into a three-down contributor for New England. Any team looking to make a deal would undoubtedly view him as a third-down specialist capable of getting involved in rotation. As a rule, a part-time workload can be expected Anfernee Jennings, who took over additional snaps in Uche’s absence. If a trade with Uche were to be cleared, he would be given a larger role in the future.