Brian Lewerke’s career in the NFL came to a difficult point even before it began.
The former Michigan State quarterback was among the nine players the New England Patriots pitched on Sunday.
The Patriots are scheduled to start performing on Monday for the COVID-19 events. Teams can normally invite 90 players to training camp, but that number is due to drop to 80 by August 16 as part of a deal reached last week by the league and the NFL Players Association. New England did not wait to cut its list.
Seven of the nine players pitched by the Patriots on Sunday signed as undrafted free agents this offseason, including Lewerke and former Louisiana Tech quarterback J’Mar Smith.
Lewerke signed with the Patriots after the team lost its franchise player. Tom Brady went to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, while former Spartan Brian Hoyer and Jarrett Stidham were the New England quarterbacks on the list. The team then signed former NFL MVP Cam Newton in July. Hoyer, Stidham and Newton are the only quarterbacks still on the list.
Lewerke started for three years at Michigan State, who finished with a 22-16 record as a starter and captain in each of the past two seasons. He set a program record for total offensive yards (9,548), ranks first in pass attempts (1,249), second in completions (721) and fourth in passing yards (8,293) and touchdowns (47).
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