FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots announced today that they have signed OL Cole Croston to the 53-man roster from the practice squad and released WR Bennie Fowler from the 53-man roster.
In addition, the Patriots signed WR Riley McCarron to the practice squad.
Croston, 24, was released by the Patriots on the final cut-down and then signed to the practice squad. He was originally signed by the Patriots as a rookie free agent out of Iowa on May 5, 2017. The 6-foot-5, 310-pounder made the 53-man roster out of training camp last season and appeared in three regular-season games and the AFC Championship Game as a rookie. He was a healthy scratch for 13 regular-season contests as well as the Divisional Playoff and Super Bowl. Croston was a walk-on at Iowa, who combined to start 18 games at both left and right tackle over his final two seasons. He was an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection as a senior.
Fowler, 27, was signed by the Patriots on Sept. 11, 2018. He originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with the Denver Broncos out of Michigan State on May 10, 2014. The 6-foot-1, 212-pounder spent his rookie season on the Broncos practice squad and made his NFL debut with Denver in 2015. Over the past three seasons, Fowler has played in 45 regular-season games with five starts and caught 56 passes for 698 yards and five touchdowns. He also appeared in three postseason contests with the Broncos in 2015 and had two receptions for 35 yards as part of Denver's Super Bowl 50 championship team. Fowler was signed by Chicago on April 16, 2018 and released on Sept. 1.
McCarron, 25, was signed by the Patriots to the 53-man roster from the practice squad on Sept. 6, 2018. The 5-foot-8, 198-pounder played in his first NFL game this past Sunday vs. Houston and was released on Sept. 10. McCarron spent the 2018 offseason with the team and was released on the final cut-down before being signed to the practice squad. He originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with Houston out of Iowa. He began his rookie season on the Houston practice squad before finishing the season on the New England practice squad after signing on Sept. 22, 2017.
