Sheard (ankle) is listed as out for Sunday's game against the Jets.

EDGE Analysis

Sheard has been a pleasant surprise in his first season with the Patriots, playing more than half of the defensive snaps and notching four sacks through five games, despite coming off the bench. His absence is good news for the New York passing game, as he's mostly been used in nickel and dime packages this season. The Patriots had starting defensive ends Chandler Jones and Rob Ninkovich play nearly all of the defensive snaps after Sheard left Sunday's win over the Colts.

The Patriots have signed Sheard to a two-year deal worth $11 million, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. The 25-year-old LB/DE, who recorded 23 sacks in four years with the Browns, should help boost the Pats' pass rush this season, and possesses the versatility to play in either 3-4 or 4-3 alignments.

Sheard (foot) is active for Sunday's game against the Ravens. Sheard has been a regular on the injury report for the past few weeks, but it has yet to stop him from taking the field this season. He'll provide pass rush depth as an outside linebacker, but his tackle opportunities may be limited with a relatively healthy unit.

Sheard (foot) is active for Sunday's matchup against the Panthers. Sheard has consistently been present on the Browns' injury report for the past few weeks, but it hasn't stopped him from suiting up yet this season. He recorded just one tackle last week, and hasn't had a sack since Week 5, so he likely won't be a high-percentage IDP option.

Sheard (foot) is active for Sunday's matchup with the Colts. Sheard will likely be part of the outside linebacker rotation along with Barkeviovs Mingo and pass rush specialist Paul Kruger. There's a chance he also returns to his regular work on special teams, though he hasn't been used in that fashion over the past two games.

Sheard (foot) recorded four tackles (three solo) in Sunday's loss to the Bills. Sheard has been a game-time decision for two straight weeks, and although he has suited up for both contests, the 6-foot-3 linebacker has recorded only five combined tackles. He's been relatively consistent this year, but risks seeing decreased reps when Karlos Dansby (knee) returns to action.

Sheard (foot) is active for Sunday's game against the Bills. Sheard performed a similar pregame routine in Week 12 against the Falcons, and was able to suit up for that contest. He only recorded one tackle, however, and risks once again being used in a limited fashion this week. Even with fellow linebacker Karlos Dansby (knee) ruled out, Sheard represents a bit of a risky IDP play in Week 13.

Sheard will test his foot out before Sunday's game against the Bills, NFL Network's Albert Breer reports. If Sheard does suit up, as he did last week against the Falcons, while recording just one tackle, he could be limited, per cleveland.com, so a wait-and-see approach is in order from an IDP standpoint.

Sheard (foot) is active for Sunday's matchup with the Falcons. Sheard had been a game-time decision, but his activity in pregame warmups gave Cleveland brass enough confidence to tag him with an active status Sunday afternoon. With Karlos Dansby (knee) ruled out for the contest, there may be more tackle opportunities awaiting Sheard in the afternoon tilt.

Sheard (foot) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Falcons, the Akron Beacon Journal's Nate Ulrich reports. The report notes that Sheard, who was very limited in practice Friday, could end up being a game-day decision Sunday, which makes the outside linebacker a risky roll in IDP formats this weekend.