Patriots to sign tight end Eric Tomlinson
Tomlinson has been with the Eagles, Texans, Jets and, most recently, the Giants.
The Patriots are adding to their tight end room again, signing Eric Tomlinson to their 53-man roster according to the NFL Network.
Tomlinson, 27, is primarily a blocker. He entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2015 and has been with the Eagles, Texans, Jets and, most recently, the Giants.
From 2016-2018 with the Jets, Tomlinson played in 39 games and made 16 catches for 193 yards and a touchdown while also playing a sizeable role on special teams.
The Jets cut Tomlinson around cut day this summer. He was picked up by the Giants and was on their roster for the first three games of this season before being let go there as well.
The move is expected to take place a day after the Patriots reportedly agreed to re-sign tight end Ben Watson. The Patriots have one open roster spot and would have to free up a second to add both Tomlinson and Watson to their roster.
The need for these moves was created last Thursday when tight end Matt LaCosse injured his knee against the Giants and fullback Jakob Johnson suffered a shoulder injury that landed him on injured reserve.
That left them in need of blockers in general and tight ends, specifically, to the point that Josh McDaniels said Tuesday that the dwindling personnel could impact game plans.
“You have to adjust and you use what you have left,’’ McDaniels said. “There’s always a way to move the ball, there’s always a way to take care of a football, there’s always a way to try to score points with what you have and in terms of your personnel groupings. So, that’s the mentality we have to take, whether it be fullback, tight end, receiver, whatever the position is that we’re a little light in.’’
The other option is to add back to that position, which is apparently what the Patriots are doing here.
