Patriots place Eluemunor on IR
Rookie OL Onwenu the next man up
As a half-dozen Patriots returned to play Wednesday, another took his exit.
The Pats placed starting right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor on injured reserve with the ankle injury he suffered in a loss to the Broncos last Sunday. Eluemunor got hurt on the offense’s 12th play from scrimmage after making his fourth start of the season. He missed the Patriots’ prior game at Kansas City due to migraines.
Eluemunor must sit out a minimum of three games on IR. The soonest he can return to play is Nov. 15 against the Ravens, his former team. On Wednesday night, Eluemunor tweeted: “I won’t miss THAT Game…Bet on it.”
Rookie Michael Onwenu is projected to start in Eluemunor’s place, having already taken rotational snaps at right tackle in Weeks 1 and 2. Onwenu also replaced him against Denver. The sixthround pick has been a pleasant surprise, performing as one of the Pats’ best players this season.
Onwenu currently ranks as the team’s highest-graded player at Pro Football Focus. Eluemunor ranks third overall among Patriots and No. 6 among offensive tackles, per PFF. Third-round rookie, Justin Herron, could also see snaps in his place, having earned an emergency start against the Chiefs when Eluemunor first went down.
“He’s definitely meant a lot. Him being out there, he’s one of our guys and losing him is big, but it’s just how it’s been all year. It’s a next man up thing,” Pats left tackle Isaiah Wynn said Wednesday.
“We’re sending prayers up for him and hoping that he heals well and we’re just going to continue to do our job.’’
Future Belichick head coaches?
Patriots safety Devin McCourty has played his entire career under Bill Belichick.
This season, he’s being coached by Bill’s youngest son, Brian. The past four years, McCourty was coached by Bill’s oldest son, Steve. Thus, it’s fair to say few know the family coaching trio quite like McCourty.
So might either of the younger Belichicks become head coaches one day? On
Wednesday, McCourty answered with a “definitely.”
“I think Steve is a little more laidback than Brian. But both of them pay so much close attention to details, and try to make sure you know all the little nuances to playing the scheme and understanding the whole scheme, not just your position and your role, knowing what everyone does,” he said.
“And I think obviously that comes directly from being around their father their whole coaching life and probably from when they were kids growing up. I’m sure he was very detailed in what they needed to do, so I definitely see that in their future. Who does it first? I don’t know. I don’t know any of that. I would say they’re both hard-workers and they try to turn over every stone in the Belichick way.”
Like father, like son
Bill Belichick is among the few NFL head coaches who have gone head-to-head against two-time Super Bowl champion MikeShanahan and his son, Kyle, now the headman in San Francisco.
The elder Shanahan is seen as the godfather of the most popular offensive system run in the NFL today, a two-pronged attack founded on a zone-blocked run game and heavy play-action passing game. Kyle, among other disciplines like Rams coach Sean McVay and Packers coach Matt LaFleur, has since put his own spin on the system. On Wednesday, Belichick was asked to compare the Shanahans’ offenses.
“There’s certainly similarities, but again, the main feature of any offense is the players, and Kyle’s done a great job of taking the skills of his players and maximizing them and utilizing them in ways where they’re effective,” So, that’s different than the players that Mike had at Denver, obviously. Mike did a good job of that and Kyle was there with him. You play to the strengths of your team and your players.
“Sometimes they’re similar because you’re running a similar offense, but sometimes they’re different and you try to do things to take advantage of those. I would just say in general, defenses have changed quite a bit in the last 20, call it 25 years, so there’s elements there of just attacking defenses is a little bit different now than it was at a different point in time.”
1960s All-Decade punter passes
Former Patriots punterquarterback Tom Yewcic died this week at 88 years old.
Yewcic signed with the Pats in 1961, following a short stint in the Canadian Football League and minorleague baseball.
He served as an emergency quarterback midway through the 1962 season and led the team to three straight wins.
He totaled 1,374 passing yards and 16 touchdowns, while also catching seven passes and rushing 72 times.
He averaged 38.6 yards per punt and later made the franchise’s 1960s All-Decade team. In college, Yewcic was a two-sport star, who helped lead Michigan State to a Rose Bowl win in 1954 and was named the Most Outstanding Player at the College World Series months later.