Mystery Patriot? Or Do Pats Still Have Open 90-Man Roster Spot To Fill?

The New England Patriots’ roster math doesn’t quite add up perfectly one week after the 2020 NFL Draft.

The Patriots now have 74 players listed on their official roster. We know of 16 undrafted free agents who have agreed to sign with the Patriots but are not listed on the official roster. So, that’s a full 90-man roster, right?

Not so fast.

ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported this week that fullback Jakob Johnson, who’s part of the NFL’s international pathway program, doesn’t count against the Patriots’ 90-man roster limit despite playing in the regular season last year.

So, the Patriots either have an open roster spot, or there’s an undrafted free agent signing who hasn’t surfaced yet. The Patriots might traditionally fill a final spot during tryouts in rookie minicamp. The Patriots have previously signed cornerback Malcolm Butler and wide receiver Gunner Olszewski after workouts in rookie minicamp. That only will be held virtually this year because of the pandemic.

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The Patriots didn’t sign any undrafted offensive linemen, but they did draft two guards and a center late in the 2020 NFL Draft. They also didn’t sign any rookie free-agent safeties after drafting Kyle Dugger in the second round.

One area where the Patriots could use more competition is at kicker. Fifth-round pick Justin Rohrwasser is the only kicker on the Patriots’ roster.

The Patriots don’t know when they’ll reconvene for practice, so they’re probably not in a rush to add a 91st player (if they haven’t already). Veteran free agents no longer count against the compensatory pick formula, so they could look to add another vet, as well. Their biggest need for a player with some experience is at offensive tackle where they don’t have an obvious backup behind left tackle Isaiah Wynn and right tackle Marcus Cannon. Korey Cunningham and 2019 third-round pick Yodny Cajuste are the only other offensive tackles on the Patriots’ roster. Cajuste never practiced with the Patriots last season after landing on the non-football injury list with a quad injury suffered during the 2019 pre-draft process.

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