Meet the Newest New England Patriot: Mike Purcell

The New England Patriots filled their last opening on the 90-man roster today. New England signed veteran defensive tackle Mike Purcell, who spent the past five seasons as a member of the Denver Broncos. It is the second player added at the position in the past week. The Patriots added Josiah Bronson to the roster on Sunday.

NFL Beginnings (2013-2018)

Purcell played collegiately for the Wyoming Cowboys. He received first-team All-Mountain West honors in his senior season (2012) but went undrafted in the 2013 NFL Draft. He signed with the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent. Purcell stuck with San Francisco’s practice squad in 2013, though did not appear in any games. He made his NFL debut in 2014.

Mike Purcell remained a member of the 49ers through the 2016 season. He appeared in 25 games, including eight starts. The 2016 season was his most productive, with Purcell playing in 15 games. He recorded 26 tackles and a forced fumble that season.

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Purcell became a bit of a football nomad over the two years. He had brief stints on the practice or offseason squads of the Los Angeles Rams, Chicago Bears, Carolina Panthers, New England Patriots, and Kansas City Chiefs. He had two stops in Foxboro. Purcell signed with the Patriots practice squad on Oct. 25, 2017, but was released the following day. He signed with the practice squad again on Nov. 7, 2017, before being released a second time on Nov. 22, 2017.

In 2019 Purcell played for the Salt Lake Stallions of the now-defunct Alliance of American Football (AAF).

Denver Broncos Years (2019-2023)

The Broncos signed Mike Purcell in the 2019 offseason and the defensive tackle made the most of the opportunity. He appeared in 13 games that season for Denver. Purcell recorded 48 tackles, including 28 solo, and eight tackles for a loss. Those remain career-highs in all three categories.

Purcell played well enough to earn a three-year contract extension with the Broncos (worth $14.8 million) in October 2020. He suffered a foot injury three weeks later, sidelining him for the remainder of the 2020 season. Purcell came back to play in 46 games over the next three seasons.

Mike Purcell appeared in 65 games with 37 starts over his five seasons with the Denver Broncos. Over his 90 career NFL games, he has recorded 208 tackles (116 solo), 15 TFL, 3.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and four fumble recoveries.

Pro Football Focus graded 2019 as Purcell’s best NFL season. He earned a 78.4 grade on the year. He dropped to a career-low 49.8 grade in 2023.

Defensive Tackle Group

Impossible not to notice the Patriots have added two defensive tackles this week. The signings come on the heels of the news that Christian Barmore has been diagnosed with blood clots and is out for an undetermined amount of time. The two open spots were created by releasing a linebacker (Jontrey Hunter) and a cornerback (Kaleb Ford-Dement). The additions of defensive tackles indicate the team believes Barmore might not be ready to go when the season begins.

New England is now carrying nine defensive tackles on the 90-man roster. In addition to Christian Barmore, the Patriots have Davon Godchaux, Armon Watts, Daniel Ekuale, Jeremiah Pharms Jr., Sam Roberts, Trysten Hill, Josiah Bronson, and now Mike Purcell.