FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Mike Vrabel had his eye on Corey Kiner ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft.
But the running back out of LSU ultimately went undrafted and ended up signing with the San Francisco 49ers' practice squad. His stint lasted until the middle of August that same year, when he was waived with an injury designation. The Minnesota Vikings signed him to the practice squad in September 2025, and then in December, he was signed to the Arizona Cardinals' active roster. That's where he remained until the end of this summer, when the New England Patriots traded for Kiner shortly before the roster cut deadline.
It was a call he didn't expect, but one he was happy to receive.
"I was a little shocked. I was happy, though," he told Patriots Wire in an one-on-one conversation on Tuesday. "Just very happy that I was getting the opportunity to come be on a 53-man roster."
Roster cutdown day is one of the hardest in the NFL, but some teams, especially those at the bottom of the waiver wire, will look to trade with another team to acquire a player they had their eye on, in an effort to ensure they get them. That's what the Patriots did with Kiner.
#wire #signed
But the running back out of LSU ultimately went undrafted and ended up signing with the San Francisco 49ers' practice squad. His stint lasted until the middle of August that same year, when he was waived with an injury designation. The Minnesota Vikings signed him to the practice squad in September 2025, and then in December, he was signed to the Arizona Cardinals' active roster. That's where he remained until the end of this summer, when the New England Patriots traded for Kiner shortly before the roster cut deadline.
It was a call he didn't expect, but one he was happy to receive.
"I was a little shocked. I was happy, though," he told Patriots Wire in an one-on-one conversation on Tuesday. "Just very happy that I was getting the opportunity to come be on a 53-man roster."
Roster cutdown day is one of the hardest in the NFL, but some teams, especially those at the bottom of the waiver wire, will look to trade with another team to acquire a player they had their eye on, in an effort to ensure they get them. That's what the Patriots did with Kiner.
#wire #signed
3 days ago
