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FOXBOROUGH, Mass. –The New England Patriots announced today that they have released first-year WRGreg Orton**.
In addition, the Patriots signed second-year wide receiver Brian Tyms and rookie wide receiver Cole Stanford.
Orton, 28, was originally signed to the Patriots practice squad on Dec. 31, 2013, released by the team on May 22, 2014, and re-signed on July 23. The 6-foot-3, 199-pounder spent part of 2011 and all of 2012 on the Denver practice squad and went to training camp with Denver in 2013. He originally entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with the Cincinnati Bengals out of Purdue in 2009. Orton had stints with the Arena Football League's Spokane Shock and the United Football League's Omaha Knights before joining the Denver practice squad.
Tyms, 25, was originally signed by the San Francisco 49ers as a rookie free agent out of Florida A&M in 2012 and spent that season on the 49ers practice squad. The 6-foot-3, 204 pounder started the 2013 season on Miami's practice squad before being signed by the Cleveland Browns midseason. Tyms played in seven games for the Browns in 2013 and caught two passes for 12 yards.
Stanford, 23, is a rookie wide receiver from Cal Poly who originally played linebacker and converted to offense after his freshman season. The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder rushed 54 times for 314 yards and one touchdown and caught 43 passes for 891 yards and eight touchdowns during his college career.
