Mohamed Sanu will reportedly undergo offseason ankle surgery
New England Patriots wide receiver and return specialist Mohamed Sanu will be forced to have surgery on his ankle this offseason.
Fans disappointed in the production and performance of wide receiver Mohamed Sanu Sr. — who was acquired midseason by the New England Patriots in a trade with the Atlanta Falcons — might reframe their opinion and judgment of the 30-year-old just a bit now, given the news that came out on Friday.
Bleacher Report’s Paul Kasabian reported that Sanu is set to undergo offseason ankle surgery to repair a high ankle sprain the wideout suffered during a kick return against the Philadelphia Eagles. Sanu sat out the following week against the Dallas Cowboys before returning to action in December against the Houston Texans.
Notably though, Sanu was nowhere near as productive during the final five games of the season as he was in a Week 9 loss against the Baltimore Ravens.
While Sanu’s debut with the Pats technically came a week earlier against the Cleveland Browns (and was relatively inauspicious with just a couple catches), his coming-out party seemed to be on the road against Baltimore. In that game, the veteran hauled in 10 of 14 targets for 81 yards and a score.
The rest of the way, however, he was the epitome of ineffective. Sanu never had more than three catches or 35 receiving yards in a game through Weeks 13-17.
It’s disappointing news for Patriots fans, no doubt about it. Sanu’s availability for the beginning of the season is now in jeopardy, despite the fact that no official timetable for his recovery and return to action was disclosed on Friday (and nor will it be anytime soon, knowing the Patriots).
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New England gave up a second-round draft pick to acquire Sanu from the team they vanquished in Super Bowl 51. The hope was that he could help replace some of the production the team lost at wideout with the flameouts of Antonio Brown and Josh Gordon, but Sanu never seemed to gel with Brady and the offense.
With any luck, he’ll make a quick and complete recovery in order to attend training camp and establish some more chemistry with Brady — or with whomever the Patriots have under center in 2020, that is.