The New England Patriots were turned down by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after inquiring about a potential trade for tight end O.J. Howard, according to a published report Monday. Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported that the Patriots reached out to the Buccaneers as they attempt to find a new threat at tight end following the offseason retirement of Rob Gronkowski. New England already asked, and was told no on, Buccaneers tight end OJ Howard," Breer wrote.

New England Patriots wide receiver Josh Gordon on Saturday was officially ruled out for Monday night's game against the New York Jets, after missing his third straight practice. Gordon hurt his left ankle and knee on Oct. 10 in the Patriots' Thursday night win over the New York Giants. The injuries are not believed to be serious, but Gordon was expected to miss at least a game or two.

Tom Brady's core of pass-catchers is going to look moderately different against the New York Jets than last week's group. The New England Patriots have ruled out wide receiver Josh Gordon (knee/ankle) as well as tight ends Matt LaCosse (knee) and Ryan Izzo (concussion) for Sunday's game. Gordon's absence comes after he appeared to twist his knee on Thursday against the New York Giants.

New York Jets receiver Demaryius Thomas termed his short stint with the New England Patriots a "waste of time" and, in an interview with the New York Daily News, said the team was disrespectful to him. Thomas was released by the Patriots at the final roster cutdown and re-signed three days later before being traded to the Jets on Sept. 11. The two teams play on Monday night and there is no love lost on Thomas' part.

New England Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore is a soft-spoken person who often lets his on-field performance do the talking. Gilmore was the only cornerback to earn an "elite" grade from Pro Football Focus last season, and he's off to another excellent start in 2019. Gilmore was targeted six times and intercepted or broke up five of those passes.

"We had a roster spot," Belichick told reporters Thursday when asked why the Patriots re-signed Watson on Tuesday after releasing him the previous Monday. "We had availability. Jak (fullback Jakob Johnson) went on IR (injured reserve), so we had an opportunity to put (Watson) on the roster that we didn't have the week before."

New England Patriots wide receiver Phillip Dorsett missed his team's Week 6 win over the New York Giants because of a hamstring injury, but he gave an encouraging update on his status after Tuesday's practice. When asked if he expects to play in the Patriots' Week 7 road game against the New York Jets on "Monday Night Football", Dorsett told reporters "I'll be fine." Dorsett suffered the hamstring injury in the first quarter of New England's Week 5 win over the Washington Redskins.

The New England Patriots have suspended defensive lineman Michael Bennett one week for conduct detrimental to the team. Bennett explained what led to the suspension in a statement provided to ESPN's Jordan Schultz: Bennett was not present at Tuesday's practice. This suspension means he'll miss the Patriots' Week 7 road game against the rival New York Jets on "Monday Night Football."

The New England Patriots continue to search for solutions at tight end. The Patriots are signing free-agent tight end and former New York Jet Eric Tomlinson, NFL Media's Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday morning. Tomlinson will join Ryan Izzo and Ben Watson, who reportedly is re-signing with New England after his release last week, as New England's three active tight ends.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady made history Thursday night against the New York Giants when he passed former rival Peyton Manning on the NFL's career passing yards leaderboard. Brady moved ahead of Manning in the first quarter for second place on the all-time list, and that milestone was part of the reason why Patriots head coach Bill Belichick gave a game ball to his starting quarterback after the 35-14 win. Belichick, in a conference call Monday with reporters, explained what was behind his decision.