The New England Patriots finalized their initial 53-man roster Saturday afternoon.
A position-by-position breakdown:
QUARTERBACKS
Brian Hoyer
Cam Newton
Jarrett Stidham
RUNNING BACKS
Rex Burkhead
Damien Harris
Sony Michel
James White
FULLBACK
Jakob Johnson
TIGHT ENDS
Devin Asiasi
Dalton Keene
Ryan Izzo
WIDE RECEIVERS
Damiere Byrd
N’Keal Harry
Julian Edelman
Jakobi Meyers
Gunner Olszewski
OFFENSIVE LINE
David Andrews
Yodny Cajuste
Korey Cunningham
Jermaine Eluemunor
Justin Herron
Hjalte Froholdt
Shaq Mason
Michael Onwenu
Joe Thuney
Isaiah Wynn
DEFENSIVE LINE
Beau Allen
Adam Butler
Byron Cowart
Lawrence Guy
Deatrich Wise
LINEBACKER
Ja’Whaun Bentley
Shilique Calhoun
Brandon Copeland
Anfernee Jennings
Derek Rivers
John Simon
Josh Uche
Chase Winovich
CORNERBACK
Justin Bethel
Stephon Gilmore
J.C. Jackson
Jonathan Jones
Jason McCourty
SAFETY
Terrence Brooks
Cody Davis
Kyle Dugger
Devin McCourty
Adrian Phillips
Joejuan Williams
SPECIALISTS
P Jake Bailey
LS Joe Cardona
ST Matthew Slater
To reach the 53-man limit, the Patriots cut 24 players Saturday: wide receivers Jeff Thomas, Devin Ross, Isaiah Zuber and Andre Baccellia; running backs Lamar Miller and J.J. Taylor; tight ends Jake Burt, Paul Butler and Paul Quessenberry; outside linebackers Rashod Berry and Tashawn Bower; quarterback Brian Lewerke; defensive tackles Nick Thurman, Xavier Williams and Bill Murray; offensive linemen Tyler Gauthier and Ben Braden; cornerbacks Myles Bryant and D’Angelo Ross; and linebackers Terez Hall, Cassh Maluia and Scoota Harris; and kickers Justin Rohrwasser and Nick Folk.
Rohrwasser (fifth round) and Maluia (sixth) were 2020 draft picks.
New England also cut receiver Mohamed Sanu, cornerback Michael Jackson and defensive tackle Michael Barnett earlier in the week. (Barnett was waived with an injury designation and reverted to New England’s injured reserve after passing through waivers.)
For the first time in 17 years, the Patriots’ initial roster did not include a single undrafted rookie.
This roster almost certainly will change before next Sunday’s regular-season opener against the Miami Dolphins as the Patriots add players via trades, waiver claims or free agency (and release players in corresponding moves).
Players released Saturday also could quickly rejoin the team if New England opts to move any members of its roster to injured reserve. In order for a player to spend time on IR and return during the season, he must be part of the team’s initial 53.
Folk could be one of these rapid returnees. The Patriots currently do not have a kicker on their 53-man roster.
Under new NFL rules in place for this season, players can return from IR after just three weeks (rather than the customary eight), and teams can return an unlimited number of players (up from two in previous years).
Defensive tackle Beau Allen and running back Damien Harris are among New England’s IR candidates.
Another rule change permits teams to carry up to six players with unlimited NFL experience (and 16 players total) on their practice squad. This could be a landing spot for a player like Miller, who debuted at Patriots practice Monday after spending all of training camp on the physically unable to perform list.
Players with fewer than four accrued seasons of NFL experience must pass through waivers before they can be signed to a practice squad. Vested veterans like Miller are exempt from this requirement.
Thumbnail photo via New England Patriots
