Patriots UDFA Tracker: D’Eriq King Among New England Signees

The 2022 NFL Draft is over, but the New England Patriots aren’t finished assembling their rookie class.

The end of Round 7 marked the start of the undrafted free agent signing period, with teams scrambling to sign players who did not hear their names called on Thursday, Friday or Saturday.

Throughout the Bill Belichick era, the Patriots have excelled at unearthing undrafted gems, with a list of finds that includes David Andrews, Malcolm Butler, J.C. Jackson, Jonathan Jones, Jakobi Meyers, Gunner Olszewski, Adam Butler, Brandon Bolden and Brian Hoyer, among others.

Below is a running tally of 2022 UDFAs who reportedly have signed with New England. This list will be continuously updated as new signings are reported:

Miami QB/WR/RB D’Eriq King
King was an undersized quarterback at Miami. Now, he’s trying to make it as a multipositional playmaker in the NFL. He visited the Patriots during the pre-draft process and had a workout with offensive assistant Joe Judge.

Texas S Brenden Schooler
A former wide receiver who played at Oregon and Arizona before landing in Austin, Schooler ran a 4.4-second 40-yard dash and profiles as a potential impact player on special teams.

Houston C Kody Russey
A teammate of third-round draft pick Marcus Jones, Russey started an unbelievable 60 games in college and appeared in three more. He spent his first five seasons at Louisiana Tech before transferring to Houston last offseason and immediately becoming the Cougars’ starting center. He’ll compete for a backup job behind longtime starter David Andrews.

Alabama DL LaBryan Ray
Ray arrived in Tuscaloosa as a five-star recruit, but his Alabama career was marred by a laundry list of injuries. He’ll have to stay healthy to have any chance of sticking in New England but likely received a positive recommendation from Bill Belichick’s longtime friend Nick Saban.

Purdue DE/LB DaMarcus Mitchell

Eastern Michigan P Jake Julien
The Patriots didn’t draft a punter, as some believed they might, they did bring Julien in to compete with incumbent Jake Bailey. Bailey was a first-team All-Pro two years ago, but his effectiveness dipped last season, and he’s set to carry a non-guaranteed salary of nearly $4 million.

LSU C/G Liam Shanahan
Here’s an interesting one. Shanahan is a local kid from Marlborough, Mass., who graduated from Harvard before transferring to LSU. He was the Tigers’ starting center for the last two seasons, playing alongside Patriots sixth-round draft pick Chasen Hines. Shanahan played every offensive snap in 2020 and every SEC snap in 2021, per his LSU bio.