Wednesday's New England Patriots Links - Patriots Need a Long-Term TE

Here are this morning's top stories:

BOSTON HERALD:

Patriots need long-term TE - Jeff Howe - Howe writes that after hardly accounting for the presences of the Patriots tight ends in Denver, the team needs to once again address that position now that there's uncertainty surrounding Rob Gronkowski and the loss of Aaron Hernandez.

Five football-related thoughts on Michael Sam and the Patriots - Jeff Howe - Howe has some thoughts on Sam and some other interesting takes in this entry.

BOSTON GLOBE:

Glad to know now what we didn't know then - Chad Finn - Finn talks about how the Patriots were under Pete Carroll, and some other thoughts in this entry.

Patriots Free Agent Targets - Zuri Berry - Berry ponders some potential targets for the Patriots in this entry.

Watch: Would Belichick ever take back Wes Welker? - Zuri Berry - Berry ponders one of the topics that seems to come up rather frequently, but would be tough to imagine happening.

ESPN BOSTON:

This Week's Mailbag - Mike Reiss - Reiss has his weekly mailbag which as usual is a terrific read, with some interesting topics discussed in this week's edition.

A few Patriots mailbag leftovers - Mike Reiss - Reiss has some additional mailbag entries, and discusses the future of Dont'a Hightower's role moving forward.

Which positions take up most cap space? - Field Yates - Yates looks at how much money is being spent on each position for the Patriots, as well as the player who accounts for the highest cap number.

Patriots & Underclassment in the Draft - Mike Reiss - Reiss looks at the number of underclassmen taken in previous drafts, as this year is shaping up to be a draft full of them.

Passing along some draft notes - Mike Reiss - Reiss has some thoughts and notes from a podcast with Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay about this year's draft.

WEEI:

Watch List: Seven players for Patriots fans to keep an eye on at combine - Christopher Price - Price has a list of players who he feels are worth keeping an eye on heading into the NFL combine.

MASSLIVE:

An update on New England Patriots rookie DT Cory Grissom - Nick Underhill - Underhill has an article on Grissom, who he writes has become a forgotten man.

New England Patriots rookie review: WR Kenbrell Thompkins - Nick Underhill - Underhill looks back on Thompkins' rookie season, which started off strong but tapered off.

NESN:

Chandler Jones' Emergence Key To Patriots' Defense Excelling In 2014 - Doug Kyed - Kyed writes that Jones came close in his second season to being the player many hoped he would be.

Aqib Talib Or Julian Edelman Getting Patriots' Franchise Tag Would be Absurd - Doug Kyed - Kyed has some strong feelings about the team using the franchise tag on either one of these two players.