March 2015 - New England Patriots Wiretap

Patriots Will Consider Resting Starters In Week 17

Dec 22, 2015 1:49 PM

The New England Patriots will consider resting their starters in Week 17.

The Patriots have already clinched a first round bye and could secure homefield advantage with a win over the New York Jets in Week 16.

"We do the best we can to manage all those things (nagging injuries, more serious injuries and players coming back to action)," Bill Belichick explained to reporters on a conference call Monday. "They're all somewhat of a consideration. We just gotta try to balance it. Each part of the question requires some thought and every decision impacts other things as well. You can't act independently. When one thing happens, there's a residual effect to it one way or another.

"We'll just have to do the best we can to balance all those things out. It's something we'll have to give some thought to and get as much information as possible because there are some guys that are in various states of physical health."

Jeremy Bergman/NFL.com

Tags: New England Patriots

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Patriots Sign Steven Jackson

Dec 22, 2015 11:55 AM

The New England Patriots will sign Steven Jackson to a one-year deal.

Jackson, 32, met with the Patriots on Wednesday and worked out with the team the following day.

Jackson was released by the Atlanta Falcons in February.

The Patriots have placed LeGarrette Blount and Dion Lewis on season-ending injured reserve.

Josina Anderson/ESPN

Tags: New England Patriots, Free Agent Rumor, Misc Rumor, Signing

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Patriots Promote Fullback Joey Iosefa Over Montee Ball

Dec 19, 2015 4:56 PM

The New England Patriots promoted fullback Joey Iosefa to the active roster Saturday.

The Patriots had just two running backs, James White and Brandon Bolden, on their active roster.

The Patriots signed Montee Ball to the practice squad this week.

Kevin Patra/NFL.com

Tags: New England Patriots, Misc Rumor

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Tom Brady Misses Practice, Listed As Questionable For Week 15

Dec 18, 2015 9:55 PM

Tom Brady came down with an illness and missed practice on Friday.

Brady is now listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans.

Ian Rapoport reports that Brady's illness "didn't sound like an issue."

Jeremy Bergman/NFL.com

Tags: New England Patriots, Injury

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Joey Bosa, Paxton Lynch Go 1st, 2nd In First McShay Draft

Dec 16, 2015 2:08 PM

Todd McShay has Joey Bosa going first overall to the Tennessee Titans in his initial mock for the 2016 NFL Draft.

1. Titans: Joey Bosa
2. Browns: Paxton Lynch
3. Chargers: Robert Nkemdiche
4. Ravens: Jalen Ramsey
5. 49ers: Jared Goff
6. Cowboys: Jaylon Smith
7. Lions: Laremy Tunsil
8. Dolphins: Ronnie Stanley
9. Jaguars: Vernon Hargreaves III
10. Rams: Laquon Treadwell
11. Saints: Jarran Reed
12. Bears: DeForest Buckner
13. Buccaneers: Jack Conklin
14. Falcons: Myles Jack
15. Raiders: Tre'Davious White
16. Washington: Michael Thomas
17. Giants: Shaq Lawson
18. Bills: Taylor Decker
19. Texans: A'Shawn Robinson
20. Eagles: Sheldon Rankins
21. Colts: Kendall Fuller
22. Jets: Leonard Floyd
23. Vikings: Darron Lee
24. Steelers: Cameron Sutton
25. Chiefs: Reggie Ragland
26. Seahawks: Maliek Collins
27. Packers: Su'a Cravens
28. Broncos: Kenny Clark
29. Bengals: Will Fuller
30. Cardinals: Carson Wentz
31. Panthers: Emmanuel Ogbah
*No pick for Patriots

Todd McShay/ESPN

Tags: Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Rams, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, San Diego Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tennessee Titans, Washington Football Team, Draft, Draft Misc

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Patriots Place LeGarrette Blount On Injured Reserve

Dec 16, 2015 1:53 PM

LeGarrette Blount will be placed on injured reserve due to the hip injury he suffered against the Houston Texans.

For the season, Blount has 165 carries for 703 yards and six touchdowns.

The Patriots now just have James White and Brandon Bolden on their active roster as running backs. Trey Williams is on the practice squad along with Montee Ball, who was signed on Tuesday.

WEEI

Tags: New England Patriots, Injury

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LeGarrette Blount Could Miss Time With Hip Injury

Dec 15, 2015 2:35 PM

LeGarrette Blount could "miss some time" with an injured hip.

The New England Patriots already lost running back Dion Lewis and left tackle Nate Solder for the season.

Brandon Bolden and James White could be the Patriots' running backs for the foreseeable future. To this point, White has been primarily used as a pass catcher and the two players have combined for just 51 carries.

Ed Werder/ESPN

Tags: New England Patriots, Injury

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Julian Edelman Returns To Practice

Dec 13, 2015 7:35 PM

Julian Edelman practice on Friday for the first time since breaking a bone in his left foot on Nov. 15th.

Edelman underwent surgery on the foot and wasn't initially expected to return until the playoffs.

But Edelman's return to the practice field may signal he could return before the end of the regular season.

Edelman has 61 catches for 692 yards and seven touchdowns this season. 

Mike Reiss/ESPN

Tags: New England Patriots, Injury

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Rob Gronkowski Returns To Practice For First Time Since Injury

Dec 10, 2015 3:27 PM

Rob Gronkowski returned to practice for the first time since injuring his right knee on Nov. 29th.

Gronkowski was wearing a protective sleeve/brace over his right knee.

Gronkowski missed Wednesday's full-pads practice, and he was held out of all practices last week.

When asked about Gronkowski, Tom Brady said Wednesday: "He's a great player. I always wish we'd have everyone, whether it's Jules [Julian Edelman] or Gronk. Different guys are dealing with different things. It's part of football season. You still have to be mentally tough to overcome whatever adversity you face and try to win a game. It may take on a little different form."

Mike Reiss/ESPN

Tags: New England Patriots, Injury

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Belichick Puts J.J. Watt In Similar Class As Lawrence Taylor

Dec 9, 2015 1:31 PM

Bill Belichick was defensive coordinator of the New York Giants during the career of Lawrence Taylor and he sees similarities in J.J. Watt.

"There's been very few players I would put in the same conversations with Taylor, but I would put Watt there," Belichick said. "It's early in his career and he's done a lot already. Taylor did it over a long period of time, but Watt's done it pretty consistently now. He's that same kind of player."

Watt so far has two defensive player of the year awards and three Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections in the first four years of his career.

"He's pretty special," Belichick said during his news conference Wednesday. "He does a lot of things well and everybody game plans for him every game. He gets a lot of double-teams, the line slides to his side, teams try to run away from him; he does a good job with all of it. They move him around a little bit, so he's not always in the same place. ... He's done a really good job dealing with a lot of extra attention, similar to some of the things we saw with teams dealing with Taylor in New York. He has that kind of disruptiveness."

Belichick still wasn't ready to rank Watt above Taylor.

"I wouldn't go above Taylor, because of the versatility that Taylor had in terms of pass coverage," Belichick said. "He was a pass-rusher, a run player and also a pass defender. It's really an elite player, and you're including the kicking game. Of course, Watt's blocked a lot of kicks too. But I think the position he plays, he's as disruptive of a defensive lineman as I've seen in the league, in the same general category as LT."

Tania Ganguli/ESPN

Tags: Houston Texans, New England Patriots, New York Giants

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Rob Gronkowski Ruled Out For Week 13, Danny Amendola Questionable
Rob Gronkowski suffered the knee injury during the fourth quarter of last week's game.

Chris Wesseling/NFL.com