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The New England Patriots signed veteran cornerback Jeff Shoate on Saturday. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Additionally, the Patriots announced that veteran safety Tank Williams has been placed on the reserve/injured list with a knee injury.

Shoate, 27, has played in 14 career NFL games, all with the Denver Broncos. The 5-foot-10-inch, 180-pound cornerback was originally drafted by the Broncos in the fifth round (152nd overall) of the 2004 NFL Draft. He played in seven games as a rookie for Denver and totaled three special teams tackles. In 2005, Shoate missed the entire season after being placed on the reserve/injured list with a knee injury on Aug. 31. Shoate spent the entire 2006 season on the Broncos practice squad. Last season, he played in seven games for the Broncos and totaled eight tackles (6 solo) before being released on Dec. 4, 2007. Shoate was signed to the Baltimore Ravens practice squad on Dec. 12, 2007, and joined the New York Giants practice squad during last season's playoffs. 

Williams, 28, was signed by the Patriots as a free agent on March 6, 2008. He is a veteran of six NFL seasons with the Tennessee Titans (2002-05) and Minnesota Vikings (2006-07). The 6-foot-2-inch, 223-pound safety has played in 70 career games with 59 starts and has recorded 303 career tackles (232 solo), 4.5 sacks, five interceptions for 14 yards, 27 passes defensed, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. He has also blocked two field goals.

Last season with Minnesota, Williams played in 13 games with two starts and had 18 tackles (12 solo) on defense and added seven special teams stops. Williams missed the entire 2006 season with a knee injury after signing with the Vikings as an unrestricted free agent on March 23, 2006. Williams was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the second round (45th overall) of the 2002 NFL Draft out of Stanford. He spent the first four years of his career in Tennessee, starting all 57 games in which he appeared over that span, recording 285 tackles (220 solo), 4.5 sacks and five interceptions.