FOXBOROUGH, Massachusetts — The New England Patriots hosted veteran kicker Nick Folk on Saturday, according to a league source and multiple reports, and could potentially sign him if he passes a physical test and coronavirus test.
Folk, 35, could add a second kicker to the roster after the Patriots selected Marshall’s Justin Rohrwasser in the fifth round of the draft.
Folk pitched seven games for the Patriots last season as the team were forced to seek a replacement for Stephen Gostkowski, who had a hip injury that put him on the injured reserve. Folk was 16 of 19 with field goals and 13 of 13 with extra points.
His potential return to New England comes a week into training camp, where Rohrwasser barely started practices that reporters were witnessing. Rohrwasser was 3-of-5 on field goals at the end of a practice Monday, but has mainly used the exercise bike since, which could indicate he’s dealing with an undisclosed injury.
Asked Friday about Rohrwasser’s improvement and assimilation into the NFL, coach Bill Belichick was vague, saying “Everyone is making progress.”
The Patriots have two open seats, so adding Folk wouldn’t require a corresponding transaction.
In addition to Folk’s visit, the Patriots officially signed free agent nose tackle Xavier Williams on Saturday, who has played 44 career games in the past five seasons with the Arizona Cardinals (2015-17) and Kansas City Chiefs (2018-2019). . The team looked for more depth in the post with the signing of free agent Beau Allen – a projected starter – who had not practiced in training camp.
The Patriots also signed Navy defensive end Paul Quessenberry, who they plan to play on close end. Quessenberry has not played football since joining Navy in 2014; he graduated in 2015 and became an infantry officer in the Marines.
The team took out defensive tackle Darius Kilgo and tight end Alex Ellis.
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