The New England Patriots made a couple of important roster moves for the offense ahead of their Week 1 matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. The Patriots added a tight end and sent an offensive lineman to the injured reserve.
The New England Patriots lost Riley Reiff and gained a TE for Mac Jones
Patriots offensive lineman Riley Reiff suffered a right leg/knee injury during the team’s final preseason game. According to Ian Rapoport, the Patriots sent the veteran to the injured reserve.
The #Patriots placed OL Riley Reiff on Injured Reserve, though it’s not believed to be season-ending. They also signed TE Pharaoh Brown to the 53-man roster.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 4, 2023
With a roster position open, the Patriots signed Pharaoh Brown to the 53-man squad. Per a statement by the Patriots, Brown had been on the Patriots practice since the end of August:
“Brown, 29, was signed to the New England practice squad on Aug. 30. He has spent time with the Oakland Raiders (2017), Cleveland Browns (2018-19, 2022), Houston Texans (2020-22) and Indianapolis Colts (2023). The 6-foot-5, 246-pounder, originally signed with Oakland as a rookie free agent on May 5, 2017 out of Oregon. Brown was signed by Indianapolis as an unrestricted free agent on April 4, 2023 and was released on Aug. 29, 2023. He has played in 55 regular season games with 36 starts and has 51 receptions for 478 yards and two touchdowns.
Last season, Brown began the season with Houston but was released on Oct. 4 after playing in the first three games. He was then signed by Cleveland on Oct. 5 and played in 13 games with five starts for the Browns, finishing with 5 receptions for 45 yards.”
Losing Riley Reiff is a concern
The Patriots’ offensive line depended on Reiff to hold at right tackle. The team has seemed to be severely lacking in talent at the offensive line position during the preseason. Losing a veteran like Reiff hurts what was already a suspect group before the start of training camp.
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