Patriots elevate three practice squad players for regular season finale
On Saturday afternoon the Patriots announced three practice squad elevations for their season finale in Miami. Defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale and defensive backs D’Angelo Ross and Sean Davis have been temporarily elevated to the roster for Sunday’s game against the Dolphins.
Ekuale has become a regular in the Patriots’ lineup, having been elevated six times this year including each of the last four games. He’s recorded five tackles and two sacks in 84 defensive snaps this season.
Ross is being activated for the third game in a row. He’s played 14 defensive snaps and 13 on special teams.
For Davis, this will be his second activation of the season for the Patriots. Davis began the season playing one game for the Colts, then played three for the Bengals before being released. He was signed to the Patriots’ practice squad in mid-October, and was activated for the Week 13 game in Buffalo where he played five snaps.
Ross and/or Davis would play a regular role in Sunday’s game. The Patriots are thin in the secondary with Kyle Dugger (hand) ruled out and Myles Bryant still on the reserve/COVID list.
Noticeably absent from the list is wide receiver Kristian Wilkerson, who caught two touchdowns last week against the Jaguars. Wilkerson has no standard elevations left for the regular season, meaning the Patriots would have needed to use one of their two COVID elevations (Bryant, Yodny Cajuste) on him. One of those spots had to go to Ross to add needed depth to the secondary, while Ekuale has become a regular in the lineup. Practice squad elevations reset in the playoffs, so Wilkerson could return next week in the Wild Card round.
In one other move on Saturday, the Patriots ruled out linebacker Dont’a Hightower. Hightower was listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report with a knee injury.
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Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at [email protected].