51 days till Patriots season opener: Every player to wear No. 51 for New England

Here’s a list of every Patriots player to wear the No. 51 jersey number

The New England Patriots are officially 51 days away from their regular season opener, which means we’re continuing out countdown series by listing every player that has ever worn the No. 51 throughout franchise history.

Third-year linebacker Ronnie Perkins currently wears the number that has been draped across the jerseys of 24 total Patriots players in the past. Former All-Pro linebacker and current Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo was one of those players.

The former first-round draft pick stepped in as one of the new-age players to take over roles previously held by defensive legends like Tedy Bruschi and Mike Vrabel. He helped kick-start the second half of the Patriots’ three Super Bowl victories in a 17-year span.

Here’s every Patriots player that has ever worn the No. 51 (via Pro Football Reference):

Giants’ Bryan Cox ran DL drills at Florida pro day

New York Giants assistant Bryan Cox ran the defensive line drills at the Florida pro day on Thursday.

While New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll attended the TCU pro day on Thursday, the team had other scouts and assistants spread out around the country.

One of those assistants was Bryan Cox, who ran the defensive line drills at the Florida pro day.

Among those participating was his son, Brenton Cox Jr., the 6-foot-3, 251-pound outside linebacker prospect who is widely expected to be a late-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft.

Other prospects who participated in pro day drills on Thursday include linebacker Amari Burney, defensive lineman Gervon Dexter Sr., wide receivers Jordan Pouncey and Justin Shorter, and quarterback Anthony Richardson, among others.

Although Cox was trained on the defensive linemen, there’s no way he missed the performance of Richardson, who absolutely stole the show.

Having so many Giants assistants run pro day drills this offseason is going to greatly benefit Schoen and the team come draft time.

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Texans work out former Cowboys, Browns DE Joe Jackson and 3 others

The Houston Texans worked out former Dallas Cowboys and Cleveland Browns DE Joe Jackson and three other free agents.

The Houston Texans are continuing to evaluate free agent talent as they gear up for their preseason opener with the New Orleans Saints on Aug. 13.

According to Aaron Wilson from the Pro Football Network, the Texans worked out defensive ends Joe Jackson and Bryan Cox along with tight ends Marcus Baugh and David Wells.

Jackson, a Dallas Cowboys 2019 fifth-round pick, also played for the Cleveland Browns from 2020-21. He was signed to their practice squad amid their playoff run earlier this year, but was not retained at the end of the season. The Carolina Panthers signed Jackson to a reserve/future contract but released him midway through organized team activities in late May.

Cox has been with the Buffalo Bills since 2020. An Achilles tear scuttled his 2021 campaign before it could begin, and he signed with the Indianapolis Colts for a month in mid-June this year before being released. Cox has also played for the Panthers from 2017-19 and also the Browns (2019).

Baugh, a former Oakland Raiders 2018 undrafted free agent, has played for NFL and other pro football teams, including Carolina (2019), Washington (2020), and most recently the Michigan Panthers of the USFL.

Wells, a Cowboys 2018 undrafted free agent from San Diego State, has spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs (2018-19), New England Patriots (2020-21), Atlanta Falcons (2021), Colts (2021), and Arizona Cardinals (2021).

Giants training camp: 9 takeaways from Day 11

The New York Giants wrapped up their final practice before Thursday’s game against the New England Patriots and here are nine takeaways.

The New York Giants took the practice field at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center on Tuesday for the final time before a Thursday night game against the New England Patriots.

Things kicked off with a quick update from head coach Brian Daboll before the team’s assistant coaches were made available to the media. The primary point of discussion was Monday’s bench-clearing brawl, but things quickly moved on to other topics.

Here are nine takeaways from training camp practice No. 11.

Giants’ Brian Daboll heaps praise on assistant Bryan Cox

Bryan Cox has stepped up in the absence of Andre Patterson and that’s no surprise to New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll.

Bryan Cox was once one of the most feared linebackers in the NFL. He excelled in the early 1990s with the Miami Dolphins and then became a favorite of Bill Parcells as member of the New York Jets.

For the last decade and a half, Cox has bounced around the league as a coach and has made a name for himself in that realm. His latest stop is with the New York Giants as their assistant defensive line coach where he is injecting his brand of fiery football into the team’s defensive front.

Cox is stepping to the forefront these days with line coach Andre Patterson dealing with some medical issues. Head coach Brian Daboll spoke about Cox’s impact on Sunday.

“I was with Bryan when he was a player, and he was one of the best leaders I’ve ever been around,” said Daboll. “As a linebacker, he was smart, tough, dependable. You know, back when we were playing at New England, he had an unbelievable hit on (former Colts wide receiver Jerome) Pathon. We were 0-2 going into a game if I’m not mistaken and heavy underdogs. Early in the game, he set the tempo. He was always there as a player. Then, I’ve been around him as he started his coaching career at different spots.

“He’s a very loyal person. He’s smart. He’s played a lot. He was a linebacker. But he was basically like a defensive lineman playing linebacker back in those days. But I thought he could add value to the staff. There were a lot of people in the room when he was interviewed, asking him questions. He’s a good teammate. A lot of good things.”

The Giants needed a lot of things heading into this new chapter, and physicality and drive were high on the list. No need to look any further for those as Cox brings enough for the whole team.

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Giants training camp: 10 takeaways from Day 9

The New York Giants completed training camp practice No. 9 on Sunday and here are 10 quick takeaways.

After a brief day off following Friday night’s Fan Fest scrimmage, the New York Giants were back on the practice field at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center on Sunday.

Things kicked off with an early morning press conference featuring head coach Brian Daboll. He recapped the first two weeks of camp and gave an outlook on what’s ahead, including coordinator and assistant coach availability next week.

Here are 10 quick takeaways from practice No. 9 on Sunday.

Colts re-sign DT Caeveon Patton

The Colts brought back UDFA DT Caeveon Patton.

The Indianapolis Colts signed defensive tackle Caeveon Patton and released defensive end Bryan Cox, the team announced Friday.

Patton joined the Colts during the spring practices as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Texas State. He was waived at the start of training camp when the Colts signed a pair of wide receivers.

However, the Colts brought Patton back to the roster and released Cox, who signed with the team in June following the conclusion of the offseason workout program.

Patton will be competing for one of the final spots in the defensive tackle room alongside Chris Williams, R.J. McIntosh and two Day 3 draft picks in Eric Johnson II and Curtis Brooks.

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Giants add Bryan Cox and Kevin Wilkins to Brian Daboll’s staff

The New York Giants have hired assistant coaches Bryan Cox and Kevin Wilkins, adding to Brian Daboll’s staff.

New York Giants head coach Bran Daboll continues to add to his 2022 staff with two more assistant coaches officially hired on Wednesday.

Former NFL linebacker and long-time defensive assistant coach Bryan Cox, 54, has been named the Giants’ assistant defensive line coach. He will work alongside Andre Patterson, who was hired as the defensive line coach last week.

Kevin Wilkins, who served as an assistant under new the Giants’ defensive coordinator Don ‘Wink’ Martindale in Baltimore last season, will now handle similar responsibilities in East Rutherford.

Cox was a three-time Pro Bowler as a player whose career spanned from 1991 through 2002. He had stints with the Miami Dolphins, Chicago Bears, New York Jets, New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints. He also won a Super Bowl with the Patriots in 2001.

As an assistant, Cox has coached the defensive line for the Jets, Cleveland, Tampa Bay and Atlanta, and was the Dolphins’ pass rush coach in 2011.

Wilkins began his career as a video intern for the Baltimore Ravens and worked as a video operations coordinator before moving into coaching in 2021.

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Could Rob Ryan, Bryan Cox join Giants’ coaching staff?

Could Rob Ryan and Bryan Cox join Don Martindale’s defensive coaching staff with the New York Giants?

The New York Giants are moving at a rapid pace now, compiling Brian Daboll’s coaching staff one piece at a time.

Under Daboll will be coordinators Mike Kafka, Don “Wink” Martindale and Thomas McGaughey. From there, the staff will spread out like a spiderweb, including several returning assistants and several new ones.

But the Giants aren’t done just yet. There are still more assistant hires to make and with Martindale now in tow, a few names may be more interesting than others. Case in point: Rob Ryan, Bryan Cox and Drew Wilkins.

Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network reports that both Ryan and Cox are “expected” to join the Giants, while Wilkins is also garnering serious consideration.

Ryan, the son of Buddy Ryan and twin brother of Rex Ryan, is certainly the most interesting name of the bunch. His coaching career dates back to 1987 with his most recent role coming as inside linebackers coach of the Baltimore Ravens under the aforementioned Martindale.

Prior to his season with the Ravens, Ryan spent a year with the Washington Football Team in 2019 but has otherwise been away from the game since 2016.

In addition to Washington and Baltimore, Ryan has also spent time with the Arizona Cardinals (1994-1995), New England Patriots (2000-2003), Oakland Raiders (2004-2008), Cleveland Browns (2009-2010), Dallas Cowboys (2011-2012), New Orleans Saints (2013-2015) and Buffalo Bills (2016). In most of those roles, Ryan served as defensive coordinator.

Cox, who was a quality player before he turned to coaching, has been out of the league since 2017. He coached the Atlanta Falcons’ defensive line from 2014-2016 and spent time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dolphins, Browns and New York Jets prior to that.

Wilkins, meanwhile, spent the past 12 seasons with the Ravens, most recently serving as their outside linebackers coach. He was informed last week that he would not be retained in Baltimore.

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Final Bills 53-man roster projection for 2020

Final 2020 Buffalo Bills roster projection heading into regular season cut-down day.

The Buffalo Bills are a mere hours away from trimming down their roster to 53 players. On Saturday, NFL teams, including the Bills, must have their team down to that number by 4 p.m. Teams entered this year’s training camp with 80 players as opposed to the traditional 90 due to COVID-19.

There were several storylines to come out of this year’s training camp. While some were the types we’re used to, others were new, such as the grapple the team had on reports coming out of training camp. While eyeballs on camp were held back from reporting things over the past few weeks, we haven’t heard much. But media outlets are no longer watching practice, and since they’re not, we’ve started to really see the dust settle a bit on where the team’s final roster could sit.

Using some of the additional info we’re now privy to, let’s put together a final guess at the squad. Here’s our last 53-man roster projection for the Bills as they head toward cut-down day on Saturday:

Bills quarterbacks Josh Allen (17) and Matt Barkley (Gannett photo).

QUARTERBACK (3)

Josh Allen, Matt Barkley, Jake Fromm

Cuts: Davis Webb

At this point of the offseason, we’ve seen two factions of reports out of Bills training camp. The first is Davis Webb out-playing rookie Jake Fromm. That could be true, but the Bills also made an investment in Fromm via a fifth-round pick. Albeit it’s a Day 3 pick, but we’ve already seen the lengths Sean McDermott will go to support a problematic Round 5 QB. Nathan Peterman was one, folks.

Because of that past, and the front office’s prior protections of from via his racially-charged text messages which surfaced this offseason… c’mon, the Bills are almost right to the finish line with Fromm so it’s hard to envision them letting him go. He’s not going to stick around on their practice squad, someone will claim him if he’s let go, so we’ll predict stays and Webb goes to the practice squad… perhaps even in a twisted way. Maybe just to protect Fromm, they keep him on the 53 and put Webb on the practice squad. Teams are much less likely to go after Webb. But if Allen gets hurt, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Webb called up from the practice squad to be QB2 behind Barkley.

And in the past the Bills have kept two quarterbacks, but with COVID-19, it’d be very silly to not do everything you can to keep all four guys around.