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Former Alabama linebacker Dont’a Hightower placed on NFL injured reserve list
By Cody McClure
Published:
Former Alabama linebacker Dont’a Hightower has been placed on the injured reserve list due to a shoulder injury.
The New England Patriots’ Pro Bowl tackler suffered a torn pectoral muscle in Week 7 against the Atlanta Falcons.
The Patriots didn’t immediately rule him out for the year when the injury occurred, but the organization couldn’t avoid the inevitable, according to a report from ProFootballTalk.
After signing Ricky Jean Francois — a former LSU defensive end — the Patriots needed an open roster spot, and reportedly came to the conclusion that Hightower would not be able to return this season.
Field Yates, an NFL reporter for ESPN, first broke the news on Twitter Tuesday afternoon:
Source: the Patriots have placed LB Dont’a Hightower (shoulder) on injured reserve. His season is now officially over.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) November 7, 2017
Hightower was a star at Alabama during one of its all-time greatest stretches from 2008 to 2011. He was a part of two national championship teams and stood as one of the defense’s undoubted leaders. Hightower was a team captain and a consensus All-American.
In college, he racked up 235 career tackles. Eighty-five of those came in 2011, a year in which he topped the Crimson Tide’s tackle chart.
Cody McClure is an SEC Football Writer for Saturday Down South. He lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he also co-hosts a midday sports radio show for FOX Sports. Cody previously worked for Athlon Sports.
