Report: Patriots Rule Out Six Players For Match Against Browns

The New England Patriots will rely on 52 players of their 53-man roster in the game against the Cleveland Browns in Week 8.The team ruled out six players for the game. The Pats didn’t fill the roster spot that was left empty when they released defensive end Michael Bennett and sent him to the Dallas Cowboys. The team allowed to carry 52 players because they didn’t have a player in his third season on the practice squad.

Wide receiver N’Keal Harry will probably fill the 53rd spot when he returns off injured reserve next week.

Ryan Izzo, Matt LaCosse, Shaq Mason, Joejuan Williams, Damien Harris and Byron Cowart are ruled out for the game.

Ben Watson and Eric Tomlinson are the only active tight ends for the second straight week.

ESPN’s Mike Reiss says the Patriots will win. He said, “It’ll be an interception party. Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield leads the NFL with 11 interceptions, the most by a Browns player through six games of a season since Paul McDonald in 1984 (12). Meanwhile, the Patriots’ defense has totaled 18 interceptions. In the past 30 years, only the 1996 Packers had more picks through the first seven games of a season (20).”

“The Baker Mayfield-Odell Beckham Jr. connection has underwhelmed through six games. OBJ is averaging 8.1 yards per target, significantly less than that of Jarvis Landry or even Ricky Seals-Jones,” Gregg Rosenthal reported. “That’s a result of poor timing from the duo, poor throws from Mayfield and a surprising amount of catchable passes Beckham hasn’t come down with. I’m fascinated to see how Freddie Kitchens and Mayfield will attempt to fix the issue in Foxborough, especially with Beckham likely to draw Stephon Gilmore plenty. New England’s heavy press-man-coverage approach should be susceptible to big plays, but the Pats haven’t faced an offense explosive enough to take advantage of their aggression. This Browns offense is fully capable of spiking for one week and resetting expectations after a shaky start, but I don’t trust their coaches, players or defense to handle all the situational-football pressure Bill Belichick and Tom Brady apply in a surprising thriller.”

Add a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *