FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots announced today that they have signed rookie LB Quentin Gause to the practice squad and released LB Rufus Johnson from the practice squad.

Gause, 23, originally signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as a rookie free agent out of Rutgers on May 5, 2016. The 6-foot, 243-pounder, was released by Philadelphia on Sept. 3 and initially signed to the practice squad on Sept. 5 before being released on Sept. 6. He played in 51 college games with 24 starts and finished with 223 total tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble and three fumble recoveries.