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Today's Birthdays in Patriots History
Rocky Bleier gets traded away for a box of jockstraps
A total of 29 games played for the Pats between five jags
Rocky Bleier gets traded away for a box of jockstraps
A total of 29 games played for the Pats between five jags
April 28, 2000: The Patriots hire Ernie Adams to be their Football Research Director
Happy 29th birthday to Dominique Easley
Born April 28, 1992 on Staten Island
Patriot DT, 2014-15; uniform #74, #99
Pats 1st round (29th overall) selection of the 2014 draft, from Florida
The Pats took a gamble drafting Easley, who had torn both ACLs in college. He was an explosive player when healthy, but that was the issue. Easley missed five games in each of his two seasons in New England and was limited to 25% of the defensive snaps both years. Easley signed with the Rams and did not miss a game in 2016, but was available for just three games after that, his career ending after two season ending stints on IR.
Happy 31st birthday to Kenjon Barber
Born April 28, 1989 in Lynwood, CA
Patriot RB, 2018; uniform #38
Signed as a free agent on Sept 11, 2018
Kenjon Barner was originally a sixth round draft pick by Carolina out of Notre Dame, in 2013. Like many late draft picks he has moved often; in his case signing with a new team nine times thus far. Unlike other bottom of the roster players Barber has twice been Special Teams Player of The Week, totaling 539 NFL special team snaps, 85 punt returns (7.4 avg) and 55 kickoff returns (23.5 yards per).
Barner was signed and cut three times by the Pats in 2018, appearing in 42 snaps over five games while rushing for 71 yards on 19 carries.
Kenjon Barner's biggest claim to fame is that he may be the only player who owns three Super Bowl rings with three different teams. Number one came with Philadelphia in Super Bowl 52 when he had three kick returns for 73 yards. Next was for being a member of the 2018 Patriots, when they won Super Bowl 53, and he received a third for being with Tampa in 2020.
And a tip of the hat to anyone that remembers the name of even just one of these former Patriots that were born on April 28:
Happy 40th birthday to Christian Morton
Born April 28, 1981 in St Louis, Missouri
Patriot CB, 2004; uniform #25
Pats 7th round (233rd overall) selection of the 2004 draft, from Illinois
Staring in 2004 many Bill Belichick detractors shouted that BB was incapable assessing defensive backs, and Morton was part of that initial draft class. In the hoodie's defense, Morton was an extremely late pick in the 2004 draft: the very last selection prior to supplemental picks. Regardless, he was lumped in with safeties Guss Scott and Dexter Reid as evidence that Belichick was a horrible GM by the naysayers. Morton never played a single down for the Pats other than in the preseason; the Pats cut him after training camp on September 5. From 2004 to 2009 he bounced around the league between Cleveland, Atlanta (twice), Washington (twice), Carolina, Denver and Tennessee. Morton appeared in a total of 14 NFL games with one interception, four passes defensed and one fumble recovery.
8/18/04: Rookie Spotlight: CB Christian Morton | Patriots.com
Happy 64th birthday to Ken Hartley
Born April 28, 1957 in Hamilton, Bermuda
Patriot punter, 1981; uniform #7
Though he was born in Bermuda, Hartley was actually a local: he went to King Philip High School in Wrentham, and Dean Junior College in Franklin. In Ron Erhardt's final season as head coach for the Patriots the team had plenty of positions that needed an upgrade, and punter was no exception. The season began with Mike Hubach handling the duties, but after five games and a 38.2 yard average he was let go.
Things got worse with Hartley, who lasted only two weeks. In his first game a partially blocked punt led to a touchdown in a 28-24 loss to the Jets. The following week against the Oilers Hartley punted for 50 yards - not an average, but a cumulative total for his two punts. Overall Hartley had nine punts for 266 yards and a long of 41, averaging a miniscule 29.6 yards per punt.
Thankfully he was quickly replaced by Rich Camarillo, who brought stability and competence to the position over the next seven seasons. Hartley later spent two seasons with San Antonio in the USFL.
Happy 76th birthday to Phil Clark
Born April 28, 1945 in Burlington, Kentucky
Patriot safety, 1971; uniform #22
Acquired in a trade with Pittsburgh on October 1, 1971
Clark is the answer to a trivia question asking what was the worst trade in the history of the Patriot franchise - which says quite a bit, considering the competition. On October 1, 1971 the Patriots traded RB Rocky Bleier to Pittsburgh for Clark, who had been benched as starter with both Dallas and Chicago in the previous two seasons. From Donald Hubbard's book, 100 Things Patriots Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die: Dynasty Edition, there is this explanation:
A Loyal Soldier
One of the Patriots' worst trades may be their most obscure one. On October 1, 1971, they traded former Pittsburgh Steelers RB Rocky Bleier back to Pittsburgh for safety Phil Clark. Bleier, a rare modern professional athlete who fought in the Vietnam War, returned badly wounded from that conflict. As a Steeler, he gained thousands of yards and helped lead fellow back Franco Harris to even more. Clark played two games for the Patriots as his career ended that fall. Most likely the trade constituted a favor to Steelers owner Dan Rooney, who wanted to keep Bleier on the roster while he recovered from his war wounds.
Clark is now employed in the health field, focusing on non-traditional wellness.
Guided Meditation with Philip Clark
Happy 31st birthday to Jerel Worthy
Born April 28, 1990 in Dayton, Ohio
Patriot DE, 2014 offseason; uniform #97
Acquired for a conditional draft pick (not exercised) on Aug 13, 2014
Jerel Worthy was a 2nd round pick by Green Bay in 2012, but a bit of a draft bust. He started just four games (all as a rookie) while appearing in 40 NFL games over seven seasons, with six NFL teams. The Pats waived Worthy after 17 days in training camp, prior to the start of the 2014 season.
One other NFL player with New England roots born on April 28:
Mark Bavaro turns 58 (b 4/28/1963)
The two-time All Pro tight end was born in Boston and grew up in Danvers. According to Bill Belichick, Bavaro belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
