John Parker Romo was waived by the Vikings once he was no longer needed as a fill-in kicker. No teams put in a claim, but he has not needed to wait long to find an interested suitor.
The Patriots are expected to sign Romo, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reports. This will be a practice squad agreement, he adds. Romo had a successful short-term run in Minnesota after Will Reichard landed on injured reserve. Romo connected on 11 of 12 field goal tries and seven of eight extra point attempts over a four-game span.
Reichard is healthy again, though, and his activation led to Romo being placed on waivers. The latter will head to New England for the closing weeks of the season, although an immediate path to playing time does not exist. The Patriots have veteran Joey Slye in the fold after he was signed in May and won a preseason competition over incumbent Chad Ryland.
Slye has gone 22-for-28 on field goals this season, including four of six on attempts beyond 50 yards. The 28-year-old has missed only one of his 18 extra point kicks, making his season a more successful one than Ryland’s in 2023. Since Slye is on a on-year contract, however, the Patriots could soon find themselves in need of a replacement at the position. Romo could use the coming weeks to audition for at least an offseason roster spot.
The Virginia Tech product earned first-team All-XFL honors in 2023, something which kept him on the NFL radar after he was unable to see regular season game time with the Saints and Lions. Romo was briefly with the Bears last year, but it was not until his recent Vikings spell that he found himself on an active roster and in a gameday lineup. After the success of his Minnesota stint, Romo will look to carve out a spot in New England’s kicking plans.