The Patriots released running back Tyler Gaffney on Monday after two injury-plagued seasons.

The 6-foot, 220-pounder arrived in New England after being claimed off waivers in July 2014, from the Panthers, who had drafted the Stanford standout in the sixth-round months earlier.

He spent that season on injured reserve after tearing a lateral meniscus in Carolina’s camp.

Gaffney, 24, spent the 2015 campaign on IR after suffering yet another knee injury in the first week of camp.

Gordon test ‘red flag’ A person familiar with the situation told the Associated Press that Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon has ‘‘raised a red flag’’ because of a recent league-administered drug test.

The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Gordon didn’t have a positive substance abuse test. But a sample collected in March showed Gordon had traces of marijuana and a diluting substance in his system. The level of marijuana was less than the minimum required for a positive test. Still, the test for Gordon, suspended for all of 2015 for testing positive for alcohol, raised concerns because, the person says, ‘‘in the state he is in [within the NFL drug program], anything above a certain amount, even if it is below the threshold, raises a red flag.’’

Gordon has applied to the league for reinstatement this offseason.

Payton speaks out

Saints coach Sean Payton lashed out at what he called lax gun laws in the wake of the shooting death of former Saint Will Smith in an apparent road rage incident over the weekend in New Orleans.

“Two hundred years from now, they’re going to look back and say, ‘What was that madness about?’ ’’ Payton told USAToday.com. “The idea that we need them to fend off intruders . . . That’s some silly stuff we’re hanging onto.’’

Payton also lamented the difference in response based on where a shooting crime takes place in the city.

“We don’t hear this noise when something happens in New Orleans East, or in the Lower 9,’’ he said, referring to predominantly African-American communities. “Now you creep into the Garden District . . . I just know this: Our city is broken.’’

Lewis gets extension

Bengals coach Marvin Lewis signed a one-year contract extension through the 2017 season, the third straight year he’s gotten extra time on his deal after losing in the playoffs. He’s 112-94-2 in 13 seasons and 0-7 in the playoffs, an NFL mark for postseason futility for a coach.