Super Bowl 2012: Patriots Release Tiquan Underwood, Could Chad Ochocinco Play?

After being inactive two weeks ago in the AFC Championship against the Baltimore Ravens, wide receiver Chad Ochocinco could very well be active in Super Bowl XLVI for the New England Patriots.

Saturday afternoon ESPN reported that the Patriots had released wide receiver Tiquan Underwood—and he happened to receive far more playing time than Ochocinco. 

With that transaction, that leads me to believe that Ochocinco has been moved up on the depth chart and will likely be active for the Super Bowl. 

Ochocinco has played in 15 regular season games for the Patriots as he snagged just 15 receptions for 276 yards and only one touchdown. 

It's questionable to know how much Ochocinco will play if he's active, and that's even if he is indeed active.

However, I do believe that if Rob Gronkowski is unable or struggles to play, New England could use more three wide receiver sets rather than two wide receiver and two tight end sets—which means Ochocinco could be on the field a lot. 

If there is anytime for Ochocinco to resurrect his first year with the Patriots, then it's now in the Super Bowl—but we'll simply just have to wait and see if he's even active for the big game. 

Be sure to check out Tony Santorsa's blog: PatriotsPlus