James White will miss the Patriots’ SNF game after his father died on Sunday.
It’s been a disheartening week for the New England Patriots. First, Bill Belichick’s mother, Jeannette, passed away at the age of 98, and now another member of the team has suffered a loss.
Unfortunately, this one’s much more tragic. Patriots RB James White reportedly lost his father, Tyrone White Sr., on Sunday after his parents were involved in a car crash. His mother is currently in critical condition.
White, as expected, is a last-minute inactive for Sunday Night Football against the Seattle Seahawks.
Sad news to report. Patriots' RB James White's father was in a car crash today and did not survive. His mother was also in the car and is in critical condition.
— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) September 20, 2020
White's father, Tyrone, was a captain with the Miami-Dade Police Department.
James was told and is inactive tonight.
We have no words. Absolutely horrific. Our thoughts go out to White and his family during these unimaginable circumstances.
This has been confirmed by other top NFL reporters.
This is true and horribly sad. James White won’t play for personal reasons, explained below. https://t.co/J41N5d7Zaw
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 20, 2020
If you want to know a little more about White’s father, this piece by ESPN’s Ian O’Connor is terrific. Here’s a small snippet from it:
"“Tyrone Sr. coached James’ youth teams in football and baseball. He wanted to make a difference with kids because he recalled a neighborhood man who made a difference with him, a coach who regularly loaded up local athletes in his truck, drove them to the fields and back, and never asked for anything in return but a pledge from these boys that they would do the same for others when they grew up.”"
Further details surrounding the incident are unknown at this point, but White will join Jarrett Stidham, Korey Cunningham, Dalton Keene, Myles Bryant and Josh Uche on the inactive list.
Patriots inactives:
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) September 20, 2020
RB James White
QB Jarrett Stidham
OT Korey Cunningham
TE Dalton Keene
CB Myles Bryant
LB Josh Uche
James White is a big surprise.
The Patriots will be playing with heavy hearts on Sunday night with the team going through so much over the last week and they’ll have to do it without one of the members who is quite literally the engine for the offense. White has been a constant for New England since the 2015 season and hasn’t missed a beat with Cam Newton taking over for Tom Brady.
The dual-threat running back is one of the most underrated in the game, registering 323 receptions for 2,839 yards and 24 touchdowns in addition to 279 rushes for 1,141 yards and eight touchdowns in 79 career games.
His teammates already got his back in this one too.
Devin McCourty after taking back an INT for a TD says for the mic "28, We love you, bro!"
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) September 21, 2020
That is in reference to James White, who is No. 28.
But forget football. That’s the last thing on anyone’s mind right now. Send all the positive vibes and energy to White and his family.
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