Getty Mohamed Sanu
After a disappointing 2019 season marred by injury and low productivity and a less-than-stellar showing in 2020 training camp, the New England Patriots have reportedly notified wide receiver Mohamed Sanu that he will be released.
Source: The #Patriots are releasing veteran WR Mohamed Sanu. A surprise.
The Patriots have informed veteran WR Mohamed Sanu of their intention to release him, a source confirms. @RapSheet first reported this.
Sanu was not part of ESPN’s final roster projection posted this morning (Insider content):
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The Writing Was on the Wall For Sanu
The Patriots acquired Sanu last season for a second-round pick, which is undoubtedly a high price to pay. Tom Brady reportedly pushed hard for the team to sign him and things began pretty well. He had a huge 10-catch performance in his second game with the team. Unfortunately, he injured his ankle the following week, missed some time, tried to play through the injury, but was never able to regain his form.
He spent the offseason having surgery and rehabbing the injury, and judging by his Instagram videos, Sanu looked to be in phenomenal shape.
However, Sanu was never a speed-receiver, to begin with, and it appears as though the injury may have robbed him of the requisite burst to create separation from defenders.
In training camp, he didn’t impress, and when you couple that with his age (31) and salary ($6.5 million) and no penalty or dead money for releasing him, it seemed to be a relatively easy choice for the Patriots to make.
Who Makes the Roster at Wide Receiver Instead of Sanu?
According to Reiss, the Patriots will likely go with five receivers on their roster, and there’s going to be a major youth movement. Gunner Olszewski was very impressive in training camp and he showed tremendous strides from last season. However, the man who figures to literally take Sanu’s spot is Devin Ross.
He routinely came down with big plays, and for an offense that lacks speed and proven playmakers, that ability stood out in a major way.
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