FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots claimed and were awarded rookie G Mark Wetterer off waivers from the Cincinnati Bengals today. To make room on the roster for Wetterer, the Patriots released first-year S Ross Ventrone.
Wetterer, 6-5, 319 pounds, was originally signed by Cincinnati as a rookie free agent on July 26, 2011 out of Louisville. He was waived by Cincinnati on Aug. 8, 2011. The 22-year old Wetterer started in 28 games at Louisville and was named a 2010 First-Team All-Big East player
Ventrone, 5-8, 190 pounds, was signed by the Patriots as a rookie free agent out of Villanova on April 29, 2010. He was waived by the Patriots on Sept. 4, 2010 and then signed to the practice squad on Oct. 19, 2010.