The New England Patriots released wide receiver K.J. Osborn on Tuesday and activated guard Cole Strange to the 53-man roster.
Osborn, 27, has played in seven games (four starts) this season, with seven catches on 18 targets for 57 yards and one touchdown. He has been on the field for 53 percent (232) of the offensive snaps but hasn’t played since the Patriots’ 19-3 win over Chicago on November 10.
Osborn was signed by the Patriots in March after spending four years with the Minnesota Vikings, who drafted him in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. In 66 regular-season games (34 starts), he has made 165 career catches for 1,902 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Strange, 26, was placed on the reserve/physically unable to perform list on August 27 due to a torn patellar tendon that he suffered in a game against the Kansas City Chiefs on December 17, 2023.
He was selected 29th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft and became the Patriots’ starting left guard, playing all 17 games in his rookie season and 10 games in 2023 before his injury cut his season short.
The Patriots also added rookie kicker John Parker Romo to the practice squad and released linebacker Keshawn Banks. Romo, 27, appeared in four games for the Vikings this season, making 11 of 12 field-goal attempts with a long of 55 yards, and seven of eight extra-point attempts before being released last Friday.
Veteran Joey Slye is the Patriots’ starting kicker.
Banks, who turns 25 on December 21, played in the Patriots’ last three games after being promoted from the practice squad.