The New England Patriots are allowed to activate one more player off injured reserve before the end of the season, and head coach Bill Belichick said Tuesday that doing so remains a possibility.
“Well, it’s still available for us,” Belichick said in a conference call. “And if we feel like it was something that could help us and there was an opportunity to use it, we would use it. So, it’s still an option.”
Under NFL rules, each team can return two players from injured reserve each season, under the conditions that those players had been placed on IR after 53-man rosters were finalized and had remained there for eight weeks. The Patriots burned one of their slots on linebacker Shea McClellin, who returned to practice after Week 6 but suffered a setback before his first game and was shut down for the season.
New England’s IR list currently includes nearly a dozen players, including stars like wide receiver Julian Edelman and linebacker Dont’a Hightower. But of those players, only two would be realistic options for activation: wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell and defensive tackle Vincent Valentine.
Mitchell appears to be further along in his recovery than Valentine, who has not been spotted in the Patriots’ locker room for months. Mitchell, who impressed as a rookie last season, was seen wearing cleats last week — a positive sign for a player who is recovering from a knee injury.
The Patriots’ decision to sign veteran receiver Kenny Britt seemed to indicate the team had given up hope of Mitchell returning this season, but that might not be the case.
Belichick’s comments are far from a guarantee that Mitchell or Valentine will be brought back, but it is notable that he’s leaving the door open.
