Patriots Make Practice Squad Moves at Tight End
FOXBORO — The New England Patriots have made a pair of adjustments to their practice squad at the tight end position.
The team confirmed the signing of tight end Scotty Washington to the practice squad. The 25-year-old was hosted for a workout on Tuesday, along with fellow tight ends La’Michael Pettway and Jacob Breeland, and running backs Nate McCrary and Godwin Igwebuike.
The team also hosted veteran linebacker and ex-Pat Jamie Collins on a free-agent.
Washington initially entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent wide receiver out of Wake Forest in 2020. During his tenure with the Demon Deacons, he caught 110 passes for 1,676 yards and 13 touchdowns across 43 games in the ACC. Prior to an ankle injury prematurely ending his redshirt senior season, Washington had seven touchdown receptions in eight appearances.
The 6-5, 247-pounder spent the past two seasons on the Cincinnati Bengals’ practice squad before being waived ahead of the Aug. 22 roster trimming deadline. Washington aligned at receiver for the Bengals until December 2021, when he converted to tight end.
In a necessary corresponding roster move, the Pats released tight end Jalen Wydermyer from the practice squad.
Signed by New England on Aug. 18, Wydermyer was an intriguing prospect for the Buffalo Bills, prior to their releasing him during training camp. He is all-time leader among Texas A&M tight ends in career receptions (118), receiving yards (1,468) and touchdown receptions (16). After being cut by New England on Aug. 30, Wydermyer spent the first two weeks of the 2022 season on the New England practice squad.
Washington now joins Matt Sokol as the second tight end on the practice squad. The production from the tight end position was nearly non-existent in New England’s 17-14 Week 2 over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Neither Hunter Henry nor Jonnu Smith had a single reception. In fact, Jones targeted the pair only four times. With each of their primary options failing to get open, the Pats turned to Lil’Jordan Humphrey for tight-end-like production on Sunday. Though he technically aligned at receiver (where he earned one catch for 11 yards), he took on the point-of-attack blocks typically given to a flex-tight end. For his efforts, Humphrey earned an 88.0 run-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus for 21 of his 26 snaps taken in Week 2.
The Pats will welcome the 1-1 Baltimore Ravens to New England for the team’s first home game of the 2022 season. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET in Gillette Stadium.
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