The AFC East champions will turn the page to the divisional round with an opening on the 53-man roster.<\/p>\n
The New England Patriots announced<\/a> the waiving of running back D\u2019Ernest Johnson on Monday, currently leaving the active depth chart in the hands of starter Rhamondre Stevenson and rookie TreVeyon Henderson.<\/p>\n Johnson, 29, had been promoted<\/a> from the practice squad in December after serving as a three-time standard elevation. The 5-foot-11, 205-pound vested veteran\u2019s stay in Foxborough got underway<\/a> in October. He has appeared eight games, including Sunday night\u2019s 16-3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in the wild card. Along the way arrived 25 rushing yards and 128 kickoff return yards across 32 snaps on offense and 34 snaps on special teams.<\/p>\n Undrafted in 2018, Johnson stands 106 games into his NFL run, including playoffs. Setting out with the Alliance of American Football\u2019s Orlando Apollos, the South Florida product joined the Cleveland Browns in 2019 and went on to be named FedEx Ground Player of the Week. Subsequent stints were made with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore Ravens and Arizona Cardinals.<\/p>\n In the regular season, Johnson\u2019s career has stretched 228 carries for 1,014 yards, 53 catches for 467 yards, as well as three starts and three touchdowns. He is a candidate to be retained and elevated upon clearing waivers.<\/p>\n New England\u2019s healthy backfield room also includes Elijah Mitchell on the practice squad. And on injured reserve, Terrell Jennings, who sustained a concussion last month, remains eligible to have his 21-day practice window open. But cornerback Alex Austin\u2019s potential activation<\/a> also looms after logging the past two weeks as a limited participant while working back from wrist surgery.<\/p>\n The AFC\u2019s No. 2 seed also released offensive tackle Sebastian Gutierrez from the practice squad on Monday, while wide receiver Jeremiah Webb and defensive tackle Leonard Taylor III reverted following playoff elevations<\/a>.<\/p>\n Gutierrez, 27, re-signed<\/a> to the 16-man group last week. It marked his third tour with the Patriots. Entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Minot State in 2022, the 6-foot-5, 308-pound tackle spent his rookie training camp with the Denver Broncos before briefly residing on the practice squad at Gillette Stadium. Subsequent stops were made with the Las Vegas Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs, Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts. Twice an elevation during his journey, he circled back in September.<\/p>\n