Veteran running back LeGarrette Blount led the Patriots with 165 carries, 703 yards and six touchdowns last season. But that doesn’t make him a lock to make the roster this season.
That’s the word from Mike Reiss of ESPN, who reports that Blount will head into training camp with his job in jeopardy, and he’ll have to run hard in camp just to earn a spot on the 53-player roster.
The one-year contract Blount signed with the Patriots this year included a base salary of just $760,000, so he comes cheap. But if the Patriots aren’t satisfied with his work ethic in camp — or if he isn’t all the way back from the hip injury he suffered in December — New England could cut him and be out only the $100,000 signing bonus he already received.
If Blount doesn’t make the roster, the Patriots would likely have Dion Lewis as their starter and James White and Brandon Bolden backing him up.