Joe Vellano stepped in late last season, including in the Super Bowl against New England, and played some productive snaps for this football team. When he made the practice squad this fall, it was fair to wonder if he’d end up staying there the rest of the season, but the Ra’Shede Hageman release and Courtney Upshaw’s injury ensured that didn’t happen.
This time around, pressed into action as essentially the third defensive tackle, Vellano delivered a couple of decent performances, but by and large was an active liability against the run, part of a team-wide problem in that regard.