Pats Pulpit
The AFC East champions will turn the page to the divisional round with an opening on the 53-man roster.
The New England Patriots announced the waiving of running back D’Ernest Johnson on Monday, currently leaving the active depth chart in the hands of starter Rhamondre Stevenson and rookie TreVeyon Henderson.
Johnson, 29, had been promoted from the practice squad in December after serving as a three-time standard elevation. The 5-foot-11, 205-pound vested veteran’s stay in Foxborough got underway in October. He has appeared eight games, including Sunday night’s 16-3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in the wild card. Along the way arrived 25 rushing yards and 128 kickoff return yards across 32 snaps on offense and 34 snaps on special teams.
Undrafted in 2018, Johnson stands 106 games into his NFL run, including playoffs. Setting out with the Alliance of American Football’s Orlando Apollos, the South Florida product joined the Cleveland Browns in 2019 and went on to be named FedEx Ground Player of the Week. Subsequent stints were made with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore Ravens and Arizona Cardinals.
In the regular season, Johnson’s career has stretched 228 carries for 1,014 yards, 53 catches for 467 yards, as well as three starts and three touchdowns. He is a candidate to be retained and elevated upon clearing waivers.
New England’s healthy backfield room also includes Elijah Mitchell on the practice squad. And on injured reserve, Terrell Jennings, who sustained a concussion last month, remains eligible to have his 21-day practice window open. But cornerback Alex Austin’s potential activation also looms after logging the past two weeks as a limited participant while working back from wrist surgery.
The AFC’s No. 2 seed also released offensive tackle Sebastian Gutierrez from the practice squad on Monday, while wide receiver Jeremiah Webb and defensive tackle Leonard Taylor III reverted following playoff elevations.
Gutierrez, 27, re-signed to the 16-man group last week. It marked his third tour with the Patriots. Entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Minot State in 2022, the 6-foot-5, 308-pound tackle spent his rookie training camp with the Denver Broncos before briefly residing on the practice squad at Gillette Stadium. Subsequent stops were made with the Las Vegas Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs, Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts. Twice an elevation during his journey, he circled back in September.
Webb, 24, went to the inactives list 90 minutes prior to kickoff in Sunday’s wild card. The 5-foot-11, 198-pound rookie wideout agreed to terms New England as an undrafted free agent in May. After being waived at the league’s roster deadline, he joined the practice squad at its formation. In between transactions, Webb caught six passes for 80 yards and his first career touchdown in the preseason while adding an explosive kickoff and punt return. His collegiate career began in 2019 at South Dakota and ended in 2024 at South Alabama.
Taylor, 23, rotated in for 22 defensive snaps in his Patriots playoff debut. The 6-foot-3, 305-pound...
