UPDATE (2:20 P.M. ET): LaBryan Ray was spotted at Wednesday’s Patriots practice, indicating he will join New England’s practice squad.
ORIGINAL STORY: We had undrafted rookie LaBryan Ray making the cut in each of our 53-man roster projections during Patriots training camp. In fact, most people who watched the versatile defensive lineman practice this summer believed he was a virtual roster lock.
And for good reason: Ray, another Alabama product, was consistently impressive during 1-on-1 drills and competitive team periods. He largely carried that success into preseason games, too.
And yet, when New England revealed its initial 53-man roster on Tuesday evening, Ray was left out. He and fellow young D-lineman Jeremiah Pharms both were released while veteran Henry Anderson was placed on season-ending injured reserve. The Patriots elected to roll with seven other defensive linemen: veterans Christian Barmore, Deatrich Wise, Lawrence Guy, Davon Godchaux and Carl Davis, and rookies Sam Roberts (sixth round) and DaMarcus Mitchell (undrafted).
That Barmore, Wise, Guy and Godchaux made the roster wasn’t noteworthy, nor was the cutting of Pharms. And, as camp progressed, it appeared more and more likely that Davis would earn a spot as he’s Godchaux’s most natural backup at nose tackle. Once news broke that Anderson wasn’t going to be on the roster, it seemed as if Ray, Roberts and Mitchell would be in contention for the final two spots on the D-line. If you were a betting man, you would’ve had Ray and Roberts getting the nod, given the former’s impressive summer and the latter’s draft status and eye-popping performance in preseason games. If anything, you could’ve made a case for Mitchell making it over Roberts due to his value on special teams.
So, it was a big surprise when Ray was the odd man out. In particular, the Patriots’ decision to roster Mitchell over Ray is a bit of a head-scratcher.
While there’s a chance that Ray clears waivers — we likely will find out Wednesday — and returns to New England’s practice squad, it’s easy to envision another team, aware of his training camp success, claiming him before the deadline. By contrast, there likely would’ve been a far greater chance of Mitchell, a special teams-first lineman, clearing waivers and signing with the practice squad. It’s a curious risk for the Patriots to take with a player whose pass-rushing talent appears NFL-ready.
Why, then, did Belichick go this route? Why not keep Ray and subject Roberts or Mitchell to waivers?
Honestly, we don’t have a great answer, though Ray’s injury history might’ve been a factor. A five-star recruit out of high school, Ray was an injury-prone disappointment with the Crimson Tide, appearing in just 44 of a possible 70 games. Still, the 6-foot-5, 295-pound lineman played in the final 13 games last season and looked healthy and explosive throughout his first Patriots training camp. Perhaps New England knows something we don’t know or simply isn’t confident that Ray can hold up in the NFL. All we can do is speculate.
At the end of the day, the Patriots might’ve placed a higher value on Mitchell’s ability to immediately contribute on the revamped special teams units over whatever they believe Ray could provide. And if the decision was between Ray and Roberts, New England might’ve preferred rostering a physical freak on whom they used a draft pick.
All of these points will prove moot should Ray eventually sign with the Patriots practice squad. But if another team claims Ray, the decision to release him will be a legitimate second guess — if it isn’t already.
