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Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff WriterOct 5, 2024, 01:54 PM ET
- Mike Reiss is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the New England Patriots. Reiss has covered the Patriots since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2009. In 2019, he was named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. You can follow Reiss on Twitter at @MikeReiss.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots wide receiver Kendrick Bourne will make his long-awaited return Sunday, as the team activated him off the physically unable to perform list Saturday to face the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium.
Bourne, an eight-year veteran in his fourth season with the Patriots, tore his right ACL against the Dolphins on Oct. 29, 2023.
Coach Jerod Mayo said this week that Bourne was healthy and the plan was for him to return and hopefully boost an offense that ranks 31st in the NFL in scoring, averaging 13 points per game.
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The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Bourne totaled a career-high 55 receptions for 800 yards in his initial season in New England in 2021. He has totaled 264 catches for 3,409 yards and 21 touchdowns over his career.
When Bourne practiced for the first time Wednesday, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt noted the impact it had on the offense.
“The energy, the juice, you felt that immediately. Practice was different when he stepped on the field,” he said. “It will be a huge boost for us in the receiving room, and his ability to get open and run with the ball after the catch are some of the things he does extremely well.”
No team in the NFL has fewer receptions (29) and receiving yards (230) from its wide receivers through four games than the Patriots. The 230 receiving yards from wide receivers is 157 fewer than any other team and the fewest by any team’s wide receivers in the first four games of a season since the 2008 Browns, according to ESPN Research.
Bourne is likely to primarily replace five-year veteran K.J. Osborn, who has played more snaps than any Patriots receiver this season but didn’t practice all week because of a shoulder injury.
Meanwhile, starting safety Jabrill Peppers was ruled out by the team due to a shoulder injury, meaning the Patriots could be without both starters at the position because Kyle Dugger missed the week of practice with an ankle injury.
In other moves, the Patriots filled two open spots on their roster with safety/linebacker Marte Mapu (who had been on IR) and practice-squad defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy. They also elevated center Bryan Hudson and linebacker Ochaun Mathis from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.
