FOXBORO, Mass. — Bill Belichick has four days to submit his first draft for a regular-season roster, and the New England Patriots head coach has plenty of work ahead of him.
Belichick said players still had a chance to earn a roster spot in practice Tuesday and in Thursday’s final preseason game against the New York Giants. The Patriots cut their roster to 75 players on Tuesday at 4 p.m. and again down to 53 on Saturday.
“I think we still have a lot of decisions to make,” Belichick said. “There are a lot of decisions that we still need to make. What will affect those decisions, I don’t know — a practice, a game, other circumstances that right now maybe aren’t even in play. Maybe something will happen over the next few days that right now we’re not taking into consideration, but we will have to.
“And again, 53-man spots are one thing, practice-squad spots are another thing. You’re talking about going from 75 to 53 plus (10), maybe there is an injured player in there somewhere. It’s really not that many. … It’s not as big as it seems, I’ll put it that way.
The Patriots can begin filling their 10-man practice squad Sunday after players clear waivers. The Patriots likely will make changes to their initial 53-man roster during the early stages of the regular season, as most NFL teams do.
Thumbnail photo via Derick E. Hingle/USA TODAY Sports Images
