FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots announced that they have released WR Eric Decker and DB Eddie Pleasant.
Decker, 31, was signed by the Patriots on August 3. He is a veteran of eight NFL seasons with the Denver Broncos (2010-13), New York Jets (2014-16) and Tennessee Titans (2017). The 6-foot-3, 214-pounder originally entered the NFL as a third-round draft pick (87th overall) of Denver out of Minnesota in the 2010 NFL Draft. Decker signed with the Jets as an unrestricted free agent in 2014. After three seasons with the Jets, he was released in June of 2017 and spent last season with Tennessee. Last year with the Titans, Decker played in 16 games with eight starts and finished with 54 receptions for 563 yards with one touchdown. He played in both postseason games with one start and posted eight receptions for 106 yards and one touchdown.
During his eight NFL seasons, Decker has accumulated 439 receptions for 5,816 yards and 53 touchdowns in 111 games with 83 starts. He registered three 1,000-yard seasons with 1,064 receiving yards in 2012, 1,288 yards in 2013 and 1,027 yards in 2015. In addition, he has returned 25 kicks for 628 yards. Decker has also played in seven postseason games with six starts and tallied 22 receptions for 301 yards and one touchdown.
Pleasant, 29, was signed by the Patriots on July 24. He is a veteran of six NFL seasons with the Houston Texans after originally joining the team as a rookie free agent out of Oregon in 2012. The 5-foot-10, 210 pounder, began his career on the Houston practice squad before being signed to the 53-man roster for the final two games of the season. Pleasant has played in 78 regular-season games with one start and has 86 total tackles, 2½ sacks, three interceptions, 17 passes defensed, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and 24 special teams tackles. In addition, he has played in five postseason games and has posted four tackles and two fumble recoveries.
Last season, Pleasant played in all 16 games with Houston and finished with 27 total tackles, two sacks, one interception, one forced fumble and five special teams tackles.
