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The New England Patriots lost one of their most experienced practice squad members on Wednesday. The Tennessee Titans plucked veteran cornerback Terrance Mitchell from New England’s practice squad, per ESPN’s Jordan Schultz.
This doesn’t come as much of a surprise for a couple of reasons. Because Titans head coach Mike Vrabel is a Patriots all-time great, there is often a bit of mutual appeal with players on both rosters. Secondly, Mitchell is a 30-year-old veteran with seven years of NFL experience. He has played 45 games over the past three seasons and has eight career interceptions.
Quite honestly, it’s a wonder the Patriots got away with stashing Mitchell on their practice squad for two whole weeks before another team took him off their hands.
The Titans are currently starting Roger McCreary and Caleb Farley at corner. Behind them, Vrabel has Tre Avery, the injured Kristian Fulton, and now Mitchell. Titans also have Ugo Amadi, and Chris Jackson listed as nickel backs, per Ourlads.
Reaction to Terrance Mitchell Being Claimed By the Titans
Mitchell’s agent Doug Hendrickson confirmed the news on Twitter by congratulating his client.
Independent Patriots reporter Justin Ramos is questioning whether the Patriots allowing Mitchell to leave to the Titans will be a pre-cursor to another reunion with linebacker Jamie Collins.
Collins came in for a free-agent visit on Tuesday, but there hasn’t been any word about him joining the team for his fourth stint in Foxboro. Collins, 32, played ten games for the Patriots last season.
It could still happen before the end of the week. The Patriots did drop tight end Jalen Wydermyer from the practice squad and signed another receiving tight end in former Cincinnati Bengal Scotty Washington, per Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson.
Translation: The Patriots should still have a practice squad spot open with Mitchell’s departure.
Patriots.com’s Evan Lazar called Mitchell lasting on the Patriots’ practice squad this long “too good to be true.”
On the bright side for the Patriots, if they could afford to keep Mitchell on the practice squad through two games, it says something about the level of play they’ve had at cornerback through a couple of games.
Examining the Patriots’ CB Depth
The Patriots’ overall defense has been strong this season, but veteran Jalen Mills appears to be playing a slot or two above his talent level. According to Pro Football Focus, Mills has a woeful 29.5 grade through two games.
While he does have an interception and a pass defended this season, the Miami Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Mitchell Trubisky both found success targeting Mills.
Tagovailoa and Trubisky completed a combined 73.3% of their passes to receivers covered by Mills. It’s early, but that completion percentage would be the highest of Mills’ career by a good margin.
On the other hand, Jonathon Jones has been strong. He has a PFF grade of 70.2. That’s the second-highest grade for any member of the Patriots secondary. He trails only Devin McCourty in that department.
Behind Mills and Jones, the Patriots have rookies Jack Jones, Marcus Jones, and Myles Bryant. New England also has Shaun Wade, but we haven’t seen him since the preseason. Jonathon Jones did go down with an injury in the game against the Steelers. Considering the Patriots didn’t elevate Mitchell, there is a good chance Jones’ injury isn’t serious.
The depth at the position seems to be good, at least for now. However, one or two injuries can change the landscape.
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