FOXBORO, Mass. – The New England Patriots announced that they have waived nose tackle Giradie Mercer today.
Mercer, 25, was claimed off waivers from the Philadelphia Eagles by the Patriots on July 31, 2001. He played in each of the first two preseason games, but did not record any defensive statistics in those games. The 6-foot-2-inch, 285-pound nose tackle originally signed with the Carolina Panthers as a rookie free agent out of Marshall following the 2000 NFL draft (4/26/00). He was released by the Panthers and signed by the Philadelphia Eagles on July 19, 2000. He was injured in the second preseason game at Baltimore (8/5/00) and placed on injured reserve on Aug. 15, 2000 for the rest of his rookie campaign.
