Patriots Gridiron News 11/16: Is Jabaal Sheard in Belichick’s Doghouse?

The New England Patriots defensive end Jabaal Sheard has seen his playing time decreased. Is he in Bill Belichick’s doghouse?

Whatever happened to Jabaal Sheard? Suddenly the New England Patriots defensive end can barely see time on the field. In a contract year, one must wonder whether Sheard has played himself out of Bill Belichick’s favor.

In Sunday night’s 31-24 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Sheard played 16-of-70 snaps. This was the lowest number of snaps he has played this season. As one of the players on defense looked to pick up the slack left due to the trades of Chandler Jones and Jamie Collins, his lack of playing time is concerning.

So why was Sheard barely on the field? When asked during his Tuesday conference call, Belichick didn’t offer much of a direct answer.

More from New England Patriots

"“Well again, that’s the kind of question that I get every week,” Belichick said via WEEI. “If one player’s numbers are a little bit higher and then others’ are a little bit lower, it’s basically the same question that you just asked, but change the players’ names around and it’s a weekly question.“Again, there are a lot of things that go into our decision-making, game plans, matchups, the way the game unfolds, the type of game it is, which we could talk about a number of different things that fall into that category. In the end, we play the players that we feel like will give us the best opportunity in any given situation in a particular game, or the way that that game happens to unfold based on what our opponents are doing and how the game situations play out.”"

He went on to emphasize that certain players play based on performance and game plan. Considering Sheard did play every snap during Seattle’s third drive of the game, his lack of performance seems to be the motivating factor in Belichick’s decision.

Add that with the fact that second-year defensive end Trey Flowers has been playing well and suddenly a player who led the team in sacks during the early part of the season finds himself lowered on the depth chart.

Hopefully Sunday night’s lack of playing time was a wake-up call for Sheard and not something that will fester into something bigger.

Earl Thomas wishes Rob Gronkowski well: Seattle Seahawks safety Earl Thomas reached out to Rob Gronkowski via Twitter on Monday. Thomas tweeted well wishes for Gronkowski following the Sunday night collision that caused the Patriots tight end a chest injury that some sources have reported as a punctured lung.

Must Read: Patriots Will Update Rob Gronkowski’s Status On Wednesday

"“Nothing but respect for Gronk,” Thomas wrote. “One of the best I’ve lined up against. Hoping to see him back on the field sooner than later.”"

Practice squad moves: The Patriots announced Tuesday that they have released tight end Kennard Backman from the practice squad.

The 23-year-old tight end was signed to the practice squad on Nov. 12, 2016. He was originally selected in the sixth round by the Green Bay Packers in 2015. He played in seven regular season games for the Packers last season, but did not record any offensive stats.

Next: Boston Celtics F Al Horford Not Happy With His Start In Boston

For more news and roster updates on your favorite NFL team, keep it locked here at Chowder and Champions.

Home/New England Patriots