Patriots linebacker getting suspended is yet another terrible look for team in 2020
It was revealed Patriots rookie LB Michael Pinckney was suspended on Friday.
The New England Patriots can’t keep it together for more than two weeks at a time. The team seemingly had a layup last Sunday to get back into playoff contention with a matchup against the 2-7 Houston Texans, but instead got beaten fairly handily — though the Pats had a chance to tie it on the final drive of the game, it always seemed out of reach.
Free agency, departures, opt outs, COVID-19 diagnoses, injuries and now suspensions are hurting New England in some way. Do we even really need to talk about what might’ve been going on with Bill Belichick and Stephon Gilmore during the cornerback’s three-week absence?
Now, the Patriots have a bit of drama in the form of a suspension, as rookie linebacker Michael Pinckney, an undrafted free agent out of Miami who’s spent most of 2020 on the practice squad, has been banned for six games for reportedly taking an illegal substance while rehabbing from surgery.
I'm told Patriots rookie practice squad linebacker Michael Pinckney was suspended six games for taking a banned supplement. He did so unknowingly while rehabbing an offseason surgery.
— Doug Kyed (@DougKyed) November 27, 2020
Quite frankly, it doesn’t matter if Pinckney hasn’t logged a snap for the Patriots in 2020. This is another bad look that just piles onto everything else for the franchise. On top of that, some viewed Pinckney as a “steal” since he was a stud at Miami and dropped in the draft due to a season-ending hip injury last year, but he hadn’t seen any action with the Pats despite the linebacking corps being decimated.
Some might call it a bit of a stretch, but others might argue this is yet another indictment of the Patriots’ relatively poor eye/luck in the draft over the last five or so years. We’ve already gone through how a number of bad drafts have put the Patriots in this current situation of the team lacking serious depth, and though Pinckney wasn’t a pick, it’s clear the front office might’ve been thinking they’d get themselves a steal on the UDFA market due to his situation.
Well, not this year! Maybe in 2021? Perhaps, but probably not.
NFL suspends Patriots practice-squad linebacker Michael Pinckney https://t.co/KabrcgEPhQ
— Oliver Thomas (@OliverBThomas) November 27, 2020
In any other season, this would be a minor blip on the radar, but because of all the Patriots continue to endure throughout 2020, it adds insult to injury and leads to more questions than answers. Everything’s further magnified, no matter how insignificant, when you’re in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time in 12 years.
That’s just the way it is.
