NFL Rumors: Patriots Re-Signing Receiver Corey Coleman To Practice Squad

The New England Patriots don’t have room for two ex-Cleveland Browns wide receivers on their roster. Or so we thought.

The Patriots signed former first-round pick Corey Coleman last Tuesday, only to release him Monday to make room for Josh Gordon.

But apparently Coleman is heading back to New England — as a member of its practice squad.

After NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported the Patriots “have interest” in re-signing the 24-year-old to their practice squad, his colleague, Ian Rapoport, appeared to confirm the news.

This is a fascinating move on several levels. The Browns traded Coleman to the Buffalo Bills in early August, likely because they expected Gordon to be a productive member of their receiving corps.

But the Bills cut Coleman on Sept. 1, while Cleveland parted ways with Gordon on Monday — and now both players somehow are teammates once again on the Patriots.

It’s quite the fall from grace for Coleman, who went 15th overall in the 2016 NFL Draft after starring at Baylor — Gordon also played at Baylor, although the two didn’t overlap — but has just 718 receiving yards over two NFL seasons.

Coleman will join Riley McCarron and Jace Billingsley as the three receivers on New England’s practice squad. It’s unclear who the team will release or remove from the practice squad in a corresponding move.