Looks like another curious case of the Foxboro Flu has come to town, and just in time for the latest roster cutdown.
Why hope is being sucked out of Patriots fans
To comply with the NFL’s mandate to have rosters trimmed to 80 players by 4pm EST on August 23rd, the Patriots placed second year LB/DE Ronnie Perkins on IR, ending his season before it really began. They also placed rookie offensive lineman Andrew Steuber on the reserve/non-football injury list. Steuber, a versatile tackle, can return, if healthy, after four weeks, but Perkins won’t see meaningful action until at least 2023, if ever in a Patriots uniform. The details of his injury remain a mystery, hence the “Foxboro Flu” designation, a term often used for when a player has an injury of some kind, but also isn’t ready or likely to contribute to this year’s squad. Rather than risking losing them via outright release and waiver claim the player is sent to an early IR.
It’s an unfortunate turn of events for Perkins, who some had hopes of seeing make progress in his second year, helping contribute to the pass rush along an evolving defensive front. Though all hope shouldn’t be abandoned as a similar path seems to have been traveled by third year LB Anfernee Jenkins, who played sparingly in his rookie season of 2020, then spent 2021 on the IR. Now Jennings seems poised to claim some pro level playing time if not a meaningful role on the 2022 Patriots defense. A best case scenario for Perkins, the former Oklahoma Sooner, may be recovering from his Foxboro Flu this season and following the path of Jennings for next season.
The Patriots must comply with roster cutdowns to 53 players by Aug. 30 at 4:00 p.m. ET.