The New England Patriots' decision to release Bailey Zappe shocked just about everyone, including those on the team.

Matthew Slater, who's seen just about everything in his 16-year NFL career, was among those surprised by Tuesday's move, saying he didn't see it coming.

“I guess I’ve learned to expect the unexpected,” Slater told reporters. “You just worry about the things that you can control. You keep your head down and hope that you do a good enough job, and you support your teammates.

“Certainly something like that is, I guess, surprising for a lot of us, but that’s just the nature of the business.”

Slater wasn't alone in sharing his surprise on Tuesday. In addition to Zappe, Malik Cunningham was also released by the Patriots on Tuesday. Trace McSorley was released on Monday, meaning that Mac Jones is the lone quarterback remaining in the Patriots' locker room, at least for now.

JuJu Smith-Schuster expressed some sadness over the situation when he spoke to reporters.

“It’s tough. These past couple days have been tough. You can come in one morning, and the guy you were just talking to, is gone,” Smith-Schuster said. “At the same time, I truly do believe what the coaches are doing, and the decisions they’re making … whatever they decide was best for the team, we’re all going to ride with it.”

The Patriots are reportedly hoping for Zappe to clear through waivers over the next 24 hours so they can place him on the practice squad when that opens on Wednesday. But there's no guarantee that the Patriots will be able to do that as any team can claim at this point.

If Zappe ends up getting claimed by another team, Slater has confidence that things will end up working well for him and for the Patriots.

“I know he’ll land on his feet and do a great job,” Slater said. “And I also trust that Coach [Bill Belichick] is always doing what’s in the best interest of the football team and putting us in the best position to have success.

“So, mixed emotions on that, but I love Bailey. He knows how I feel about him. He’s one of my favorite kids of all time.”