The New England Patriots have made moves to add fresh faces to their roster for the 2026 season, but it looks like the danger of a familiar face missing time in the new campaign has passed.

Defensive tackle Christian Barmore had been facing domestic assault and battery charges after an alleged incident with his girlfriend last August. According to the criminal complaint, Barmore was said to have taken his girlfriend’s phone, grabbed her by the shirt and thrown her to the floor. However Massachusetts prosecutors have dropped the charges during a hearing in Attleboro District Court on Monday, as they do not believe they can prove the case against Barmore.

The Patriots announced in an earlier statement that they were aware of the situation and had informed the league office. With no further criminal action to be taken, Barmore’s legal troubles should be over, but there is still a possibility the NFL could take action against him under their personal conduct policy.

As of today, though, there appears to be nothing preventing Barmore from continuing a career that has so far produced 15.5 sacks and 148 tackles in 65 regular season games for the Patriots, who selected him in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft.