The New England Patriots are making room on their 53-man roster, just as two key injured players appear to be nearing their returns.
As announced by the team Monday afternoon, the Pats are releasing cornerback Miles Battle and offensive lineman Brenden Jaimes. This news comes as the team already got defensive tackle Milton Williams back at practice, and is set to get left tackle Will Campbell back as well. When asked whether he thinks Campbell will practice this week head coach Mike Vrabel responded, “I think he will.” The freshly crowned AFC East champions are about to get ready for their regular season finale against the Miami Dolphins, which takes place Sunday at Gillette Stadium with a 4:25 p.m. EST start time.
While there’s no official or explicit connection between Monday’s transactions and the status of Campbell and/or Williams, top Patriots insider Mike Reiss’s opinion is that the Pats are “likely creating some space on the 53-man roster” for the latter two.
Battle, 25, played five games for the Patriots, including the last four in a row. He played mainly on special teams, but got on the field for 25 defensive snaps as the Pats’ backups played in the second half of Sunday’s blowout win over the Jets. Jaimes, meanwhile, was active for three games, also seeing time on special teams. He even managed to log eight offensive snaps on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
Campbell hasn’t played since suffering a sprained MCL in Week 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals. He has missed the requisite four games on injured reserve, giving the Patriots an opportunity to start the 21-day clock to activate him, as soon as Wednesday’s practice in Foxboro. Campbell has been visible of late, between traveling with the team the last two games and chugging a beer while shirtless at a Celtics game. But his presence on the sidelines on Sundays, especially, is a sign of both his impending availability and his overall commitment to the Patriots.
“I think Will cares deeply about this team and the players on it,” Vrabel said Monday. “That was his decision. I mean, I usually would rather these guys stay, get some rest, recover and treatment, and once he started feeling good enough to travel he asked to go. And so, I think it can only help him to be around his teammates, be into the game and help them just like Mack did yesterday.”
Williams, meanwhile, returned to practice ahead of last Sunday’s game, but was not activated. The Patriots’ decision to make space on the 53-man roster is a sure sign that he’ll be back for a final tune-up against the Dolphins, before the Patriots embark on their playoff road in January.
Matt, a North Andover, Massachusetts native, has been with The Sports Hub since 2010. Growing up the son of Boston University All-American and Melrose High School hall-of-fame hockey player Steve Dolloff, sports was always a part of his life. After attending Northeastern University, Matt focused his love of sports on writing, extensively writing about all four major Boston teams. He also is a co-host of the Sports Hub Underground podcast and is a regular on-air contributor on the Sports Hub. Matt writes about all New England sports from Patriots football to Boston Celtics and Boston Bruins.