The New England Patriots engaged in a pair of trades on Wednesday to strengthen their offensive.
The franchise acquired Jermaine Eluemunor, the offensive lineman from Baltimore for a yet-to-be-disclosed draft pick, the Ravens reported. Korey Cunningham, the offensive from Cardinals also shared that he was traded to the Patriots. The Instagram post, where he made the announcement though has already been deleted.
"I was just notified that I have been traded to the New England Patriots," part of Cunningham's post read. The post stayed up on the social media site for a total of 30 minutes only though. Why it needed to be deleted is still a question.
None has been confirmed by New England Patriots though. The choices are also quite unexpected since the two players do not have much NFL experience yet.
The acquisitions of both Cunningham and Eluemunor have some implications, once confirmed, the most direct of which are on former practice-squad players, Dan Skipper as well as Cole Croston. The two were pursuing the swing tackle role after all.
\Another implication of these trades is that starting center David Andrews' absence is truly affecting the team. The trades are more likely how the club is currently adjusting without him, as losing him has a trickle-down effect on those within the line.
After the blood clot report, many analysts expect veteran Ted Karras to be promoted to Andrews' starting center spot temporarily, but the team might have other plans.
The acquisitions are necessary as they are urgent. Time is growing short before the season opener of the club against the Pittsburgh Steelers. It was unfortunate that David Andrews had to be hospitalized because of blood clots in his lung, but the team has to move forward.
On his part though, Andrews seems to be doing well, although he still cannot play. He was released from the hospital Monday night, as reported by the Boston Globe. He was spotted at practice on Tuesdays, standing on the sidelines. Wearing only street clothes, he chatted with some of his teammates, who were naturally glad to see him. He did not participate in the practice.
According to right tackle Shaq Mason, it was a relief to see him, but he never doubted Andrews' capacity to heal. "It was great to see him, definitely," starting right tackle Shaq Mason said. "But we've got tremendous confidence in any guy that steps on the field because we've gone through situations like this before," he added.
