The Patriots added additional depth on Wednesday by signing tight end Troy Niklas and offensive lineman Luke Bowanko.
According to the NFL Network, the deal for Niklas is a one-year contract. The 25-year-old is coming off his best season, catching 11 passes for 132 yards and a touchdown. He started 11 of 15 games.
A second-round pick in 2014, Niklas’ career hasn’t materialized like many draft pundits thought it would. Over the past four seasons in Arizona, [...]
The Patriots added additional depth on Wednesday by signing tight end Troy Niklas and offensive lineman Luke Bowanko.
According to the NFL Network, the deal for Niklas is a one-year contract. The 25-year-old is coming off his best season, catching 11 passes for 132 yards and a touchdown. He started 11 of 15 games.
A second-round pick in 2014, Niklas’ career hasn’t materialized like many draft pundits thought it would. Over the past four seasons in Arizona, Niklas struggled with injuries. He played in seven games as a rookie in 2014 after dealing with a hernia. The next season, in 2015, he played all 16 games, catching four passes for 33 yards. Niklas then spent most of the 2016 season on the injured reserve with a wrist injury.
At 6-foot-6, 270 pounds, Niklas has idea size for a tight end. He’ll try to make the Patriots roster as a third tight end behind Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen. The Patriots also have Jacob Hollister and Will Tye under contract.
Bowanko entered the NFL as a sixth-round pick in 2014. That season, he started 14 of 16 games at center for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was a reserve for the Jaguars the following two seasons. Last year, he made one start at left tackle for the Baltimore Ravens.
At 6-foot-6, 300 pounds, Bowanko will give the Patriots additional depth along the offensive line. He could push Ted Karras for the backup center role behind David Andrews. Since he played a little tackle last season, he could also factor into that competition.
The news of Bowanko’s signing was first reported by ESPN.