MORSE: Way Too Early 53-man Roster Projection
Patriots 2026 Roster: A Way Too Early 53-Man Projection Analysis
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QB (3) – Drake Maye, Tommy Devito, Behren Morton
No discussion here. Morton has been given the 3rd QB job. This may end up as 2 QBs with Morton on the PS.
RB (4) – Rhamondre Stevenson, Treyveon Henderson, Lan Larison, Robert Gilliam (FB)
I’m not impressed with Jam Miller, even if he did play at Alabama.
WR (6) – Mack Hollins, Romeo Doubs, Kyle Williams, Efton Chism, Pop Douglas, TBD
They gave Kyle Dixon a $252,000 guaranteed contract. Maybe they try to squeeze him onto the PS. Boutte, Hollins, and Douglas are all in their contract year. Something has to give here. TBD is for someone they will trade for after June 1st. Wouldn’t be surprised if either Boutte or Douglas or both are gone.
TE (3) – Hunter Henry, Julian Hill, Eli Raridon
I thought the Patriots should have doubled down on TEs since they could have picked a good one late rather than waste the picks on UDFA-quality ST players. They could have stashed him on PS for a year for when Henry eventually retires.
OL (9) – Will Campbell, Alijah Vera-Tucker, Jared Wilson, Mike Onwenu, Morgan Moses, Caleb Lamu, Demetrious Crownover, Ben Brown, Caeden Wallace
It’s a battle for that last spot. Caeden Wallace has the inside track, but he has done nothing in three seasons. James Hudson and Mekhi Butler will compete, but it is Wallace’s to lose. I was very disappointed the Patriots didn’t select a Guard in the draft. However, by drafting a Left Tackle in the 1st round, they have protected themselves should either Vera-Tucker or Onwenu get hurt. They can move Campbell to Left Guard if Vera-Tucker gets hurt, or move Vera-Tucker to Right Guard, which he has played most in his career, if Onwenu gets hurt or leaves as a Free Agent after 2026.
DL (5) – Milton Williams, Christian Barmore, Corey Durden, Leonard Taylor, Joshua Farmer,
Solid group, but they don’t replace Tonga’s size and tenacity.
EDGE (5) – Harold Landry, DreMont Jones, Elijah Ponder, Gabe Jacas, Quintayvious Hutchins
Landry is coming back from knee surgery. Jacas could step right in if Landry has a setback. Luketa is a camp body, and they drafted Hutchins because of his special-teams ability. Is it enough to stick with the team? Considering how many ST snaps they lost this year with the player they released, Hutchins stays.
LB (5) – Robert Spillane, Christian Elliss, KJ Britt, Chad Muma, Namdi Obiazor
They haven’t filled Jack Gibbens’ role as backup inside LB. Obiazor is a ST-only guy. Can Chad Muma fill the void in an ST role? I liked Muma coming out in the 2022 draft. He was the 7th-ranked LB and tested very well (4.63 40, 6.903-Cone, 40” Vert, 10’9” BJ, 4.21 SS). His RAS was 9.77, which is elite. PFF gave him a grade of 67.1 on Special Teams last season, and he had 3 Tackles in 7 games with NE, which was better than Jack Gibbens’ 55.9 grade and 4 Tackles all season.
CB (6) Christian Gonzalez, Carlton Davis, George Woods, Marcus Jones, Karon Prunty, Kindle Vildor
Prunty was the biggest reach in the draft. Dane Brugler writes up over 600 players, and 257 are drafted. He didn’t have a write-up on Prunty, whom he ranked as the 52nd CB in the draft and a UDFA. I sure hope he is the second coming of Matthew Slater. I will add that Prunty had two other Top 30 visits besides the Patriots, so other teams were interested. Prunty may be switched to Safety. Prunty had a PFF Coverage Grade of 86.8 overall, with No. 12 coverage corner in the country and No. 2 in the ACC. He had a Catch rate allowed of 44.4%, second-best in the ACC. Those are not stats of a player that was not in the PFFr Top 450 players or #52 CB by Dane Brugler!
S (4) Kevin Byard, Dell Pettus, Craig Woodson, Brenden Schooler
Looks like Brenden Schooler will have to play some S this year. I think they are really thin at this position and would have liked to see a player come in and learn behind Byard for a year.
ST (3) Bryce Barringer, Andy Borregales, Julian Ashby
Disappointed they didn’t bring in competition for Barringer. They invited McCarthy to Rookie Mini Camp and could be signed with three open roster spots.
The media gets to see the players on Saturday for a limited amount of time. Draft picks, UDFA signees, and rookie invitees should show what they can do and take the next step toward a career in the NFL.
The Patriots have a big need for Kickoff Returners. Special Teams is a way that these rookies can make the 53-man roster.
Patriots Draft Selections Stayed at One School
In the era of NIL Money being paid to college players, loyalty and allegiance to one school is a rarity these days. The Patriots drafted 9 players, and 7 of those picks stayed all 4 years at one school. Karon Prunty started at Kansas, transferred to North Carolina A&T, and finished at Wake Forest. Namdi Obiazor started at Iowa Western Community College and was a JUCO All-American before signing with TCU.
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