Patriots officially place leading receiver Kendrick Bourne on injured reserve

The Patriots announced WR Kendrick Bourne is being placed on IR.

The New England Patriots officially announced wide receiver Kendrick Bourne has been placed on injured reserve.

On Monday, an MRI revealed Bourne tore his ACL in the Week 8 game against the Miami Dolphins. There was hope that it was just an MCL injury, but it ended up being a worst case scenario for the Patriots.

Bourne currently leads the team with 37 receptions for 406 yards and four touchdowns. After a down year, he had emerged as quarterback Mac Jones’ favorite receiving target.

The timing is tough considering Bourne was playing on an expiring contract with a chance to play himself into a lucrative extension with the Patriots or elsewhere.

Instead, he’ll be shifting focus to rehabbing his injury in hopes of returning to the field as soon as possible. Bourne has made a living off proving people wrong since he arrived in the NFL as an undrafted free agent.

Only a fool would count him out now.

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