Patriots make a flurry of roster moves in preparation for Week 17
The New England Patriots’ biggest decision ahead of Week 17 was to keep receiver Julian Edelman from returning to action for 2020. They placed him on injured reserve after playing six games with a knee issue. But he couldn’t make a return to the field, perhaps in part because the Patriots were out of playoff contention.
But that non-transaction, with Edelman reverting back to injured reserve after briefly returning to practice with the IR-return label, isn’t the only move the Patriots made this weekend. They made a flurry of transactions in preparation for the Week 17 — and some of them could impact the 2020 offseason, too.
Here’s a look at those roster moves ahead of the Patriots’ Week 17 tilt with the New York Jets.
The Patriots signed TE/DE Rashod Berry to the 53-man roster
Berry has largely played defensive end this season, but with the Patriots' tight end group struggling so enormously, New England might give him a try on offense in Week 17. He played tight end in college at Ohio State before the Patriots signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2020 and tried playing him on both sides of the ball.
The Patriots signed CB Michael Jackson to the 53-man roster
New England added Jackson to the roster for Week 17, and he'll be active. This comes in the wake of Stephon Gilmore finishing his season on injured reserve with a thigh injury. Gilmore, Jason McCourty and J.C. Jackson all have uncertain futures with the Patriots. It makes sense to keep Jackson on the roster to help maintain depth. Jackson joins Jackson, Jason McCourty, Jonathan Jones, Joejuan Williams and Myles Bryant on the active roster.
The Patriots signed LB Cassh Maluia to the 53-man roster
With New England dealing with so many injuries at linebacker in the final weeks of the season, the Patriots seemed intent upon promoting Maluia to help with depth -- and, if Ja'Whaun Bentley proves limited -- perhaps Maluia, a sixth-round pick out of Wyoming in 2020, will even get a large share of work in the season finale.
The Patriots activated OL Ross Reynolds and DB D’Angelo Ross to the 53-man roster from the practice squad
New England used standard elevations to put Reynolds and Ross on the 53-man roster. Reynolds was active for the game, but Ross was not.
The Patriots signed DB Dee Virgin
New England signed Dee Virgin to the 53-man roster on Friday. The signing was based exclusively with the thought of retaining him through the 2021 offseason, as he couldn't play in Week 17 due to COVD-19 protocols. Virgin has worked for the Houston Texans, Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Rams. The 5-foot-9, 195-pound defensive back entered the league as an undrafted free agent from West Alabama in 2017.
The Patriots place DL Tashawn Bower and LB Josh Uche on injured reserve
The Patriots announced this transaction on Thursday, but it casts further uncertainty on New England's linebacker and edge depth. Bower spent most of his time playing defensive end. Uche played mostly on the edge. He was a second-round draft pick in 2020, and finished a promising season with nine tackles and one sack in nine games played. “[We] like Josh. I think he’s done a lot of positive things for us in the kicking game and defensively has some versatility,” Belichick said. “We were kind of trying to figure that out early, what his best spot would be, and it took a little while for all that to materialize. He was inactive part of the year, but he’s definitely going to help us. He’s a good football player and we’ll be able to define his role and his situation much better next year after a year of experience with him. So, I’m looking forward to that. He’s definitely going to be an asset for us and if he continues to work and improve, he’s got a good future.”
