The New England Patriots typically wait until the end of August to make massive cuts to their roster. This process has been pushed upwards in this offseason schedule.
Just a few weeks ago, the Patriots had 90 players on their roster. They are now reduced to 75 players after 12 cuts, eight opt-outs, one out, one placement on the reserve list, three signings, three re-signings and one trade addition.
We’ll spare you the intricate details.
But while the Patriots had 13 wide receivers on their roster as of July 25, they fell to 10 after Marqise Lee retired and Sean Riley and Quincy Adeboyejo were called off. Lee’s decision to step down was the biggest shoe to give up. He was a legitimate threat for a spot on the list in a young and inexperienced position group.
Now Damiere Byrd, Julian Edelman, N’Keal Harry, Will Hastings, Jakobi Meyers, Gunner Olszewski, Devin Ross, Mohamed Sanu, Jeff Thomas and Isaiah Zuber are vying for between four and six places on the possible 53-man roster.
You can extract Edelman and Harry from this list. They don’t go anywhere as list locks.
You can also put Hastings and Zuber aside for now. They are the longest-serving tallest players to make the 53-man roster after their July 26 release. Hastings was re-signed on July 28, while Zuber was brought back on August 5.
The fiercest competition for these last two to four places then goes to Byrd, Meyers, Olszewski, Ross, Sanu and Thomas.
Sanu is almost locked down for the roster, and something very bad should happen for him to be excluded from the Week 1 roster. Yes, he struggled last season after coming in via the Falcons’ trade. ‘Atlanta, but the Patriots invested a second-round pick in him.
Meyers has the next best odds for a spot on the list. He impressed last summer in training camp and preseason, then caught 26 passes for 359 yards in 15 games as a rookie.
Maybe we underestimate Byrd or overestimate Olszewski, but they seem to have about an equal chance at a spot on the list. Byrd enjoyed a relative breakout season in 2019, catching 32 passes for 359 yards with one touchdown with the Arizona Cardinals after racking up just 12 catches for 129 yards with two touchdowns in his previous three seasons with the Panthers. Carolina. Olszewski was in the Patriots roster last season and was the top punt returner, also catching two passes for 34 yards, before being placed on the injured reserve.
Thomas is the most intriguing undrafted free agent – compared to Hastings and Zuber – as a former four-star rookie who has flared up in Miami over character concerns. He’s made it this far with the Patriots, and that’s a positive sign, without a doubt.
Ross spent most of last season on the Patriots practice team. Hastings was the slot catcher for Patriots quarterback Jarrett Stidham in 2017 before coming to New England as an undrafted free agent this spring. Zuber was the Patriots’ highest-paid undrafted receiver this offseason.
It is far from being a proven positional group. He has decent advantages over Harry, a 2019 first-round pick, Meyers and Thomas, but he’s also not a collection of particularly talented players.
But the picture of the position clears up with Lee, Riley and Adeboyejo outside.
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara / USA TODAY Sports Images
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