FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots announced that they have signed eight players from the 2016 practice squad to future contracts. In addition, the Patriots signed TE Rob Housler to a future contract.Â
OL Chris Barker, LB Trevor Bates, OL Jamil Douglas, OL Chase Farris, RB Tyler Gaffney, DL Woodrow Hamilton, DL Darius Kilgo and WR Devin Lucien all finished the season on the New England practice squad.Â
Housler, 28, is a veteran of five NFL seasons with Arizona (2011-14), Cleveland (2015) and Chicago (2015). The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder, originally entered the NFL as a third-round draft pick (69th overall) of the Arizona Cardinals out of Florida Atlantic in the 2011 NFL Draft. Housler has played in 65 NFL games with 27 starts and has 109 receptions for 1,166 yards with one touchdown. After four seasons in Arizona, he signed with Cleveland as an unrestricted free agent on April 9, 2015. Housler played in six games with the Browns before being released. He signed with Chicago on Dec. 8, 2015 and played in four games for the Bears. Housler was released by Chicago On Sept. 3, 2016 and spent the season out of football.
