Among the veterans who didn’t make the Patriots’ 53-man roster were safety Marcus Epps and wide receiver Kendrick Bourne. But talk that neither player wanted to stay in New England was met with skepticism by Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel.

When a reporter asked Vrabel if the Patriots granted requests from players who asked for their release, Vrabel answered, “I don’t know who you’re referring to, I guess, specifically.”

When the reporter said he was referring to Epps and Bourne, Vrabel suggested that perhaps it was a Costanza-style preemptive breakup situation.

“That’s news to me,” Vrabel said. “I think we just, again, try to put the roster together. I guess when it doesn’t work out, you break up with somebody, your girlfriend doesn’t want to be with you, and then you say, ‘Well, I

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