The Initial 53 Man Roster

[Ross12]

3 UDFA's this year...

Bill screwed it up in his final year by not keeping a UDFA in 2023 and ruining the streak.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

Agree that offensively we are in better shape across the board on depth, other than rb which looks like a wash unless kiner provides an upgrade to the jags last year.

Defensively, i think cb and safety look better.
Edge appears to be a wash and an uphill battle unless landry makes it back.
Lb is tbd, but replacing last year’s depth is not a tall task there.
DL is worse at the moment, tonga is the only loss i see from last year that hasn’t been replaced to a comfortable extent though daquon jones could help there.

So imo we’re equal to or better everywhere except DL. Very Good progress this offseason.

Who will be returning kicks? Id have preferred a backup somewhere who is a homerun threat on kickoffs unless they are willing to devote treveon and kw to returning.

 

[Pape]

Bill screwed it up in his final year by not keeping a UDFA in 2023 and ruining the streak.

d%#*!@t Bill...

 

[Wozzy]

Bill screwed it up in his final year by not keeping a UDFA in 2023 and ruining the streak.

Malik Cunningham and Alex Austin were so close.

 

[Ross12]

Malik Cunningham and Alex Austin were so close.

Those Cunningham preseason games were fun times.

 

[borisman]

 

[mike_usagisan]

Is he better than Haack?

 

[Ross12]

Why not put Baringer on IR if this is an issue? They didn't use both "day 1" IR-DTR slots.

 

[Clonamery]

Why not put Baringer on IR if this is an issue? They didn't use both "day 1" IR-DTR slots.

Jeepers. Maye is going to score everytime he has the ball = no punts. It's math at it's most basic.

 

[Pape]

Why not put Baringer on IR if this is an issue? They didn't use both "day 1" IR-DTR slots.

not sure what the issue is, but maybe they don't want to lose him for the 6 weeks (or however long) the IR stint is?

 

[mike_usagisan]

Why not put Baringer on IR if this is an issue? They didn't use both "day 1" IR-DTR slots.

Maybe they're worried that they'll have a lot more injuries this season and will need all those slots?

 

[Brotherblues]

Bill screwed it up in his final year by not keeping a UDFA in 2023 and ruining the streak.

Yep. I heard Kraft threw a fit about it and that's when the relationship went south.

 

[manxman2601]

 

[Brady85-23]

Mike reiss is saying punter mitch wishnowski is gonna be a patriot. Hope that boots charles woods off the team

 

[Ross12]

Maybe they're worried that they'll have a lot more injuries this season and will need all those slots?

You can have 8 players who come back from IR in a season (plus 2 more once you make the postseason), but you can only designate 2 as specifically "DTR" on cutdown day. They only used one, on Bryant. They could've theoretically used the other on Baringer but did not.

Logically they could put him on traditional IR today which still allows him to come back later but also allows them to just leave him on IR if they want. So, essentially, they can sign another punter and treat it as an extended tryout. If after several weeks they feel Baringer is a substantial improvement over this player then they cut that guy and bring Baringer back. If there is not a substantial improvement, or if they don't feel it's worth using a return slot on a punter at that point and would rather hold it for someone else, they could leave him on IR for the year or until a later time.

It is worth noting he is a free agent after the season ends.

 

[Ross12]

Wishnowsky recent stats:
- 2023 (49ers): 52 punts, 47.7 avg
- 2024 (49ers): 22 punts, 45.2 avg
- 2025 (Bills): 38 punts, 45.3 avg

Baringer in same timeframe:
- 2023: 79 punts, 46.9 avg
- 2024: 75 punts, 49.8 avg
- 2025: 73 punts, 47.4 avg

 

[mike_usagisan]

You can have 8 players who come back from IR in a season (plus 2 more once you make the postseason), but you can only designate 2 as specifically "DTR" on cutdown day. They only used one, on Bryant. They could've theoretically used the other on Baringer but did not.

Logically they could put him on traditional IR today which still allows him to come back later but also allows them to just leave him on IR if they want. So, essentially, they can sign another punter and treat it as an extended tryout. If after several weeks they feel Baringer is a substantial improvement over this player then they cut that guy and bring Baringer back. If there is not a substantial improvement, or if they don't feel it's worth using a return slot on a punter at that point and would rather hold it for someone else, they could leave him on IR for the year or until a later time.

It is worth noting he is a free agent after the season ends.

Yeah, that flexibility sounds like it makes a ton of sense. I get the sense that the Pats still like Barringer (moreso than some fans) but I wonder just how much they do.

 

[jdlboot14]

Mike reiss is saying punter mitch wishnowski is gonna be a patriot. Hope that boots charles woods off the team

No, I hope that boots Baringer off the team. And I still don't know why Haack didn't stick. He was better than Baringer ever was in his 1 last minute game. Also, Haack is a great name for puns if he ever screwed up.

 

[Brady85-23]

No, I hope that boots Baringer off the team. And I still don't know why Haack didn't stick. He was better than Baringer ever was in his 1 last minute game. Also, Haack is a great name for puns if he ever screwed up.

Yea eventually baringer but hes not on the 53 right now so someone else still has to go

 

[TheRainMaker]

RB group is a downgrade from last season. I wasn't a fan of Gibson prior to joining NE, but he was a solid rotational back. One of the rare good finds in FA by the Mayo/Wolf regime.

OL is holding on for dear life. One injury could seriously set them back.

DL is the same as last season. Nobody thought Tonga was going to amount to anything.

Edge is a complete mess and a major concern. This will absolutely be their priority next off-season.