The Patriots have added size to their defensive front by claiming nose tackle Marquan McCall off waivers from the Carolina Panthers.
The Patriots waived/injured wide receiver Tre Nixon to make room for McCall. Nixon suffered an injury during Saturday’s preseason game with the Green Bay Packers. He’ll revert to injured reserve if he clears waivers.
McCall, who’s listed at 6-foot-3, 345 pounds, was a surprise cut by the Panthers. He was starting for Carolina’s defense earlier this summer.
“Those are tough decisions — we appreciate his contribution,” Reich told reporters in Carolina. “Honestly, we’re doing it now because we think he’s going to be on a roster somewhere. It just comes down to two things: It comes down to a fit for us and what we’re trying do, and then we’ve had a couple of guys at that position who have really looked good. So, wish Marquan the best and appreciate his contribution.”
McCall, who signed with the Panthers as an undrafted free agent out of Kentucky last spring, played 16 games last season and recorded 15 tackles with two tackles for loss and one QB hit.
He joins Davon Godchaux, Christian Barmore, Lawrence Guy, Daniel Ekuale, Carl Davis, Sam Roberts, Jeremiah Pharms and Justus Tavai on the Patriots’ defensive tackle depth chart. He has just one week to show the Patriots he deserves a roster spot. The Pats play the Tennessee Titans in their final preseason game Friday. They must trim their roster from 90 players down to 53 on Aug. 29.
Godchaux, Barmore, Guy, Ekuale and Davis all were significant contributors for the Patriots on defense last season. The Pats also added 6-foot-5, 290-pound edge defender Keion White in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Nixon was selected in the seventh round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of UCF. He’s spent the last two seasons on the Patriots’ practice squad. He appeared to injure his shoulder during a target from backup quarterback Bailey Zappe and immediately went into the pop-up blue medical tent after being tended to by trainers. Nixon didn’t re-enter Saturday’s game.
JuJu Smith-Schuster, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne, Demario Douglas, Tyquan Thornton, Kayshon Boutte, Raleigh Webb, Thyrick Pitts and Malik Cunningham remain at wide receiver on the Patriots’ roster. Nixon was viewed as a long shot for the 53-man roster prior to his injury. Smith-Schuster, Parker, Bourne, Douglas, Thornton and Boutte have been the most competitive wide receivers through nearly four weeks of Patriots training camp.
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