A day after placing standout defensive tackle Christian Barmore on injured reserve, the New England Patriots announced they had placed punter Jake Bailey on IR as well on Saturday.
Despite coming off a bye week, injuries have obviously still been an issue for the Patriots.
In a corresponding move, the team also announced they were signing veteran punter Michael Palardy to their 53-man roster. The change comes at a time when Bailey was clearly struggling.
There had been other punters brought in to workout with the team with hopes of seeing what else is out there and possibly even lighting a fire under the 25-year-old punter.
The Patriots showed good faith by making Bailey one of the highest-paid punters in the league. So far, things haven’t turned out the way they expected. Now, Palardy will have a legitimate opportunity to take the starting job with Bailey out for at least the next four games.
