Patriots Reportedly Trade Pierre Strong For Offensive Tackle

The Patriots added some much-needed offensive line help Sunday. The cost: a speedy running back entering his second season.

New England traded Pierre Strong to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for offensive tackle Tyrone Wheatley Jr., according to multiple reports.

NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport was the first to report the deal.

Wheatley, the son of former NFL running back Tyrone Wheatley, spent time with Chicago, Las Vegas and Cleveland over the last two seasons. The 26-year-old has yet to appear in a regular-season NFL game.

A former tight end, Wheatley split his college career between Michigan and Stony Brook. He’s listed at 6-foot-6, 320 pounds and played both right and left tackle for the Browns this preseason, posting the fourth-best Pro Football Focus grade among all NFL tackles with at least 30 snaps played.

Wheatley worked out for the Patriots last August before signing with Cleveland.

The Patriots exited the preseason with myriad O-line injuries, including ones sidelining veteran tackles Calvin Anderson, Conor McDermott and Riley Reiff. Reiff suffered an apparent knee/leg injury while playing guard in Friday night’s preseason finale against Tennessee.

Interior linemen Mike Onwenu, Cole Strange, Kody Russey and Atonio Mafi also were unavailable for the Titans game.

By trading Strong, the Patriots cut ties with a player they drafted in the fourth round just a year earlier. The South Dakota State product boasts enticing speed but saw minimal offensive playing time as a rookie and missed a chunk of his second preseason with a concussion. Strong carried eight times for 31 yards and caught two passes for 13 yards Friday night.

The Patriots bolstered their running back room earlier this month by signing Ezekiel Elliott. With Strong out of the picture, some mix of J.J. Taylor, Kevin Harris, Ty Montgomery and C.J. Marable will fill the final one or two roster spots in that position group.

New England must finalize its initial 53-man roster by Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.