Mohamed Sanu's time as a Patriot is finished.
New England intends to release the veteran receiver, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported. Sanu was with the Patriots for less than a full season after New England acquired him via trade with the Falcons for a second-round pick.
The release will not be final in time for Wednesday's transaction wire, leaving some time for interested teams to strike a deal with the Patriots for the wideout, Rapoport added. With some teams in need of receivers in the final two weeks before the start of the regular season, New England might find itself receiving calls on Sanu. The Patriots have already been shopping him, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported.
New England itself was pursuing a deal to acquire Sanu less than a year ago, when it became clear Tom Brady needed another receiving option to join Julian Edelman and slowly progressing rookie N'Keal Harry in a thin corps. Sanu arrived with the expectation of being a reliable and productive target for Brady, like he was for Matt Ryan in Atlanta for three and a half seasons, but instead caught just 26 passes for 207 yards and one touchdown.
His play continued to underwhelm through camp this summer. NFL Network's Mike Giardi reported last week Sanu was "very quiet" in his play, while other receiving options (Harry, Gunner Olszewski) appeared to be outperforming the 31-year-old.
Might a change of scenery help Sanu find his old form? Plenty of veterans have arrived in New England and failed to match expectations (Brandon Lloyd and Chad Johnson, for example), so it could just be a case of a bad fit for Sanu. We'll find out soon enough where he'll get his next shot to achieve in the NFL.
