The New England Patriots have made just as many free-agent additions in May than they did when free agency first opened in March. That’s pretty uncommon, but the Patriots are making it work in the bargain aisle.
The Patriots’ latest transaction came Monday — the same day organized team activities began — when they re-signed defensive tackle Danny Shelton, who was on their Super Bowl LIII-winning squad.
Let’s take a look at the Patriots’ 2019 depth chart after New England has added Shelton, Nick Thurman, Shilique Calhoun, Benjamin Watson, Jared Veldheer, Dontrelle Inman and Jamie Collins since the 2019 NFL Draft ended.
QUARTERBACK
Tom Brady
Brian Hoyer
Jarrett Stidham
Danny Etling
— Brady won’t be present for OTAs so it will be the Hoyer, Stidham and Etling show. NESN.com’s Zack Cox noticed Etling was taking special teams reps Monday during OTAs.
It’s smart for the longshot 2018 seventh-rounder to do anything he can to try to earn a roster spot.
RUNNING BACK
Sony Michel
Rex Burkhead
Damien Harris
Brandon Bolden
Nick Brossette
— Harris, a 2019 third-rounder, will have a chance to pass Burkhead on the depth chart during OTAs, minicamp, training camp and the preseason.
SUB BACK
James White
Rex Burkhead
Damien Harris
— Harris was known as a strong pass-blocker at Alabama, so it’s possible he could see some third-down reps this season, as well.
FULLBACK
James Develin
Jakob Johnson
— German-native Johnson has little chance of making the 53-man roster coming from the NFL’s international gateway program.
WIDE RECEIVER
Julian Edelman
Demaryius Thomas
Phillip Dorsett
N’Keal Harry
Dontrelle Inman
Maurice Harris
Braxton Berrios
Damoun Patterson
Jakobi Meyers
Ryan Davis
Matthew Slater
Suspended: Josh Gordon
— It was difficult to order those top four receivers prior to OTAs. Thomas is coming off of a torn Achilles, but if he’s healthy and hasn’t lost a step, then he’s the most experienced player after Edelman and likely will start. Dorsett has the third-most experience in the offense behind Edelman and Slater, a special-teamer. Harry has the most upside as a 2019 first-round pick. We’ll guess Thomas won’t be fully healthy to start the season so Dorsett and/or Harry will start Week 1. Inman is a nice insurance policy if Thomas can’t get healthy, Harry can’t quickly catch on and Gordon’s suspension isn’t lifted.
TIGHT END
Ben Watson
Matt LaCosse
Austin Seferian-Jenkins
Ryan Izzo
Stephen Anderson
Andrew Beck
Jakob Johnson
— It wouldn’t really shock us if Watson, LaCosse, Seferian-Jenkins or Izzo was starting Week 1. This group is wide open, but Watson received the largest contract, so he tops the depth chart.
OFFENSIVE TACKLE
Isaiah Wynn
Marcus Cannon
Jared Veldheer
Yodny Cajuste
Cole Croston
Cedrick Lang
Dan Skipper
Tyree St. Louis
— There’s an outside chance Veldheer could push Wynn or Cannon for a starting spot. Cajuste also has some starting upside, but it’s unlikely we see it in 2019, barring injury.
GUARD
Joe Thuney
Shaq Mason
Ted Karras
Hjalte Froholdt
Brian Schwenke
— Thuney and Mason are locked in as starters.
CENTER
David Andrews
James Ferentz
Tyler Gauthier
— Andrews also is locked in as a starter.
DEFENSIVE END
Michael Bennett
John Simon
Deatrich Wise
Chase Winovich
Derek Rivers
Shilique Calhoun
Keionta Davis
Trent Harris
— Simon, Wise, Winovoch, and to a lesser degree, Rivers, Calhoun, Davis and Harris will compete for the No. 2 spot behind Bennett. Simon is most likely to play across from Bennett in Week 1, but Winovich has the highest upside.
DEFENSIVE TACKLE
Lawrence Guy
Mike Pennel
Adam Butler
Danny Shelton
Byron Cowart
Ufomba Kamalu
David Parry
Nick Thurman
— Shelton will battle for a roster spot with Cowart, Kamalu, Parry and Thurman. The Patriots reportedly also showed interest in signing recently cut All-Pro defensive tackle Gerald McCoy.
If the Patriots sign McCoy, then Shelton, Cowart, Kamalu, Parry and Thurman will have to fight to convince New England to carry a fifth defensive tackle.
LINEBACKER
Kyle Van Noy
Dont’a Hightower
Ja’Whaun Bentley
Jamie Collins
Elandon Roberts
Christian Sam
Calvin Munson
Terez Hall
Brandon King
— Collins is the Patriots’ latest addition at linebacker. He’ll likely serve as a reserve behind Van Noy, Hightower and Bentley, but he could push for a starting role with a solid spring and summer.
CORNERBACK
Stephon Gilmore
J.C. Jackson
Jason McCourty
Joejuan Williams
Jonathan Jones
Keion Crossen
Duke Dawson
Ken Webster
D’Angelo Ross
— The biggest question here is how many cornerbacks are the Patriots willing to carry? It seems the maximum would be six. Crossen was ahead of Dawson on the depth chart throughout the 2018 season. Dawson, a 2018 second-round pick, has to prove he’s worth keeping this offseason.
SAFETY
Devin McCourty
Patrick Chung
Duron Harmon
Terrence Brooks
Nate Ebner
Obi Melifonwu
A.J. Howard
Malik Gant
— It’s likely the Patriots carry McCourty, Chung, Harmon, Brooks and Ebner on the 53-man roster, but they could keep four safeties because four cornerbacks — Jason McCourty, Williams, Jones and Dawson — have the versatility to either play safety or fill roles safeties typically fill.
SPECIAL TEAMS
K Stephen Gostkowski
LS Joe Cardona
P Ryan Allen
P Jake Bailey
— Allen and Bailey are competing for the punter job. We find it extremely unlikely the Patriots would keep four specialists with all of the competition on the roster, but crazier things have happened.
