New England Patriots Report

Report: Patriots work out two specialists

August, 13, 2011

8/13/11

9:36

AM ET

By Mike Rodak | ESPNBoston.com

The Patriots recently worked out kicker Rhys Lloyd and veteran long snapper James Dearth, according to Aaron Wilson of the Carroll County Times and Scout.com

A native of England, the 29-year old Lloyd has played for four NFL teams over his six-year career, seeing his most action as a kickoff specialist for the Panthers over the past three seasons.

Dearth, 35, is a veteran of 12 NFL seasons and snapped for the Jets from 2001-2009.

With both players, this appears to be a case of the Patriots updating their emergency lists. However, rookie kicker Chris Koepplin had a kickoff go out of bounds and long snapper Matt Katula had a bad snap on a point-after attempt, both on Thursday night, so it is possible the team could be looking into replacing those players.

Mike Rodak

Patriots reporter, ESPNBoston.com

Mike Rodak began covering the Patriots for ESPNBoston.com in July 2010.

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ABOUT THIS BLOG

Mike Reiss

Mike Reiss first started covering the Patriots in 1997 with the team's official newspaper, Patriots Football Weekly, before moving on to the MetroWest Daily News in his hometown of Framingham. From 2005 to 2009, he covered the Patriots for The Boston Globe, while also writing on the NFL. He started his popular Patriots blog in 2004. Send any questions or comments for Mike to his mailbag. Follow him on Twitter (@MikeReiss).

Mike Rodak

Mike Rodak began covering the Patriots for ESPNBoston.com in July 2010. A native of Grafton, Mass., Mike attended Providence College. Follow him on Twitter (@mikerodak)

Field Yates

Field Yates begins his contributions to ESPNBoston.com in 2012 after having written for a number of football-related sites around the web. Field began his professional career after college with the Kansas City Chiefs, working in both the scouting and coaching departments of the franchise before redirecting his focus to a career in media. He also interned for four summers in the coaching and scouting departments with the Patriots. Follow him on Twitter (@FieldYates).