The New England Patriots have released linebacker Brandon Spikes on Monday morning after his damaged car was found abandoned on I-495 in Foxborough a day earlier. Shortly before 3:30 a.m. ET Sunday, police responded to a report of a 2011 Mercedes Maybach in the median strip. Police said they were notified by a representative of the OnStar on-board navigation system that the driver reported hitting a deer. <aside class="inline editorial float-r" data-behavior="article_related">Editor's Picks
<figcaption class="photoCaption">A car registered to Brandon Spikes was found abandoned after a reported highway crash early Sunday morning, according to Massachusetts State Police. <cite>Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images</cite></figcaption></figure></aside>Procopio said the investigation will seek to determine whether there is any connection between the reported incidents. No connection has yet been definitively established. The Patriots re-signed Spikes, who played for them from 2010 to 2013, to a one-year deal worth a maximum value of $2 million on May 16. The only guaranteed money in the deal was a $25,000 signing bonus. The move then was a surprise considering how Spikes' time with the team ended and some of his critical remarks about the franchise on social media. Spikes' departure from New England in 2014 included some fireworks as he was placed on season-ending injured reserve in the playoffs and questioned the team's decision to do so. ESPN NFL Insider Chris Mortensen had reported that the Patriots and Spikes mutually agreed to the IR designation as opposed to an outright release after the linebacker was late to a team meeting that week. That essentially ended any chance that Spikes would return in 2014, with Spikes saying he was happy to move on to "somewhere you're wanted." After signing a one-year deal with the Buffalo Bills in 2014, he tweeted some shots at the Patriots, including "4 years a slave" to refer to his first four seasons in the NFL with New England. After returning to the Patriots in May, Spikes said, "We can clearly see that me and 'The Hoodie' kissed and made up," Spikes said of coach Bill Belichick. "I'm here, that's in the past, and I'm moving on." Spikes' past with the Patriots also included the NFL investigating a compromising video of him with a woman that was posted online, as well as a four-game suspension at the end of that year for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing substances policy. A second-round selection by the Patriots out of Florida in 2010, Spikes has 340 total tackles, two sacks, six forced fumbles and two interceptions in his five NFL seasons.
- Unlikely reunion with Brandon Spikes blows up on New England Patriots In the end, the Patriots' need for an experienced LB led to an unlikely reunion with Brandon Spikes. Just 23 days later, it has blown up on them.
