FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots announced today that they have activated WR Donte Moncrief and DL Akeem Spence to the 53-man roster from the practice squad [Standard Elevations] and restored OL Justin Herron to the 53-man roster from injured reserve. The Patriots also announced that they have placed RB Rex Burkhead, DL Carl Davis and OL Isaiah Wynn on injured reserve and placed TE Jake Burt on practice squad injured reserve.
Moncrief, 27 [#14], was signed by New England to the practice squad on Nov. 4, 2020. The 6-foot-2, 216-pounder was activated to the 53-man roster for last week's game at Houston and caught one pass for 15 yards. He reverted to the practice squad on Nov. 23. Moncrief was originally drafted by Indianapolis in the third round (90th overall) of the 2014 NFL Draft out of Mississippi. He played four seasons with the Colts before signing with Jacksonville as an unrestricted free agent on March 16, 2018. Moncrief played the 2019 season for Carolina and Pittsburgh, appearing in eight games and registering four receptions for 18 yards. He was signed by the New York Jets on Aug. 31, 2020, and spent time on the Jets practice squad earlier this season. Overall, Moncrief has played in 78 regular season games with 43 starts and totaled 205 receptions for 2,576 yards and 21 touchdowns. He has also appeared in three postseason contests with one start and posted five receptions for 86 yards and one touchdown.
Spence, 28 [#52], was signed to the New England practice squad on Nov. 21. The 6-foot-1, 303-pounder is a veteran of seven NFL seasons with Tampa Bay (2013-16), Detroit (2017), Miami (2018), Philadelphia (2019) and Jacksonville (2019). Spence originally entered the NFL as a fourth-round draft pick (100th overall) by Tampa Bay out of Illinois in the 2013 NFL Draft. He has played in 103 regular-season games with 57 starts and totaled 195 tackles, 10½ sacks, one forced fumble and three fumble recoveries.
Herron, 25, played in the first six games of the regular season with two starts – at right tackle at Kansas City (10/5) and at left guard vs. Denver (10/18). The 6-foot-5, 305-pounder was drafted in the sixth-round of the 2020 NFL Draft out of Wake Forest. He was placed on injured reserve on Oct. 31 and has missed the last four games.
