FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots announced that they have signed LB Michael Pinckney to the practice squad. In addition, the Patriots released DL Xavier Williams from the practice squad.
Pinckney, 22, played collegiately at Miami (Fla.) from 2016-19. The 6-foot-1, 220-pounder played in 49 games and totaled 267 tackles, 14 1/2 sacks, three interceptions, nine passes defensed and one fumble recovery during his four-year career at Miami.
Williams, 28, is a veteran of five NFL seasons with the Arizona Cardinals (2015-17), the Kansas City Chiefs (2018-19) and New England Patriots (2020). The 6-foot-2, 309-pounder originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent out of Northern Iowa on May 5, 2015. After sending his first three seasons with Arizona, Williams signed with Kansas City as a restricted free agent on March 22, 2018. He has played in 45 regular-season games with six starts and registered 85 tackles, three sacks and three forced fumbles. In addition, he has played in four postseason games with Kansas City and posted 11 total tackles. Williams was signed by New England on Aug. 22, 2020, and began the regular season on the practice squad before being elevated to the 53-man roster prior to the season opener. He appeared as a reserve in the Week 1 win vs. Miami and made two tackles before reverting back to the practice squad.
