MORSE: Some Hits and Misses on Patriots' Initial 53-Man Roster

This is not the roster the Patriots will go into the Seattle game with. They have holes that need to be filled, and some of the players that made the initial roster won’t be on the roster for game one. Waiver claims (unlikely) and Free Agents may still make their way onto the roster.

There is plenty of room for improvement on this roster. They lack quality depth, and poor drafting has stripped them of these depth players. Eliot Wolf’s 2024 draft was a disaster outside of the Drake Maye pick. After Sunday’s cuts, Maye will be the only player left from that draft class. Dell Pettus was an UDFA who made the team. Oh, and it was Wolf who didn’t draft Ladd McConkey but traded that pick to the Los Angeles Chargers for Ja’lynn Polk and Javon Baker. Both are out of the NFL within two years. Perhaps we need to start looking at Eliot Wolf as being part of the problem. The team also doesn’t seem to be adhering to the “Packer Way” of Draft and Develop.

This year’s Draft Class is not looking too bright either. Both Caleb Lomu and Gabe Jacas have a long way to go before they can be considered NFL-caliber players. They have both disappointed so far, and it looks like 2026 is going to be a red-shirt year for both. Eli Raridon looks like the star of the draft class. Kayron Prunty should be a star on Special Teams but has a long way to go to becoming an NFL cornerback. Dametrious Crownover has potential, and there are not many OTs with his size or movement skills, so he is a project. Behrens Morton has had his ups and downs, as most rookies do, and has shown enough to make the team as the 3^rd QB. I have been surprised by Quintayvious Hutchins. He will contribute on STs right away and is a better pass rusher than Gabe Jacas (which isn’t saying much).

I stated in my roster projection that the Patriots should be calling around and offering draft picks to other teams for players that might get cut, and rather than risk losing them through waivers, make some trade offers. Ryan Cowden stepped up and identified two players, RB Corey Kiner and OT/OG Walter Rouse, who can help the Patriots.

Aug 22, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Tommy DeVito (16) hands off to running back Hassan Haskins (26) during the first half against the Philadelphia Eagles at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images — **(PHOTO: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images)**

Scorecard

Injuries are hard to evaluate since I am not in the building or privy to that information. A player like Marcus Bryant being placed on IR necessitated trading for Walter Rouse. Bryce Barringer’s status was unclear, but he made the 53-man roster. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Matt Haack signed to the Practice Squad (PS) just in case Barringer isn’t ready to go. Haack could be elevated off the PS for the game if required. Haack did a very good job in the Browns game. The two trades just go to show how bad the depth was on this team. This season they are 31^st in the waiver claim order, not 4^th like last year. They identified two players they think can help them and made the trades to get them.

I was wrong on 5 players making the 53-man roster (Kiner, Rouse, Barringer, Brown, and Morton). Consequently, I had 5 players cut that I had making the team (Larison, Saunders, Vildor, Barringer (IR), and Haack). An interesting point is that the Patriots did not use the second IR/DFR slot they could have used.

You can never predict the actual trades. It appeared that Lan Larison was on the 53-man list right up to 15 minutes before the deadline when the Patriots acquired Walter Rouse and a MIN 2027 7th-round pick for one of the Patriots’ 2027 6th-round selections (TBD). The Marcus Bryant move to IR forced the Pats to go out and get a Veteran backup Tackle. They didn’t want to go into the next 4 weeks with rookie Caleb Lomu and Dametrious Crownover as their only backups.

Jun 2, 2026; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots tight end Eli Raridon (82) looks on during the team's OTA at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images — **Eli Raridon. (PHOTO: Eric Canha-Imagn Images)**

Offense 26

QB (3) Drake Maye, Tommy DeVito, Behren Morton

Morton’s play against Cleveland was atrocious. Two INTs and a 3^rd that was called back by a Pass Interference penalty. I was surprised he made the team.

RB (4) Rhamondre Stevenson, TreVeyon Henderson, Corey Kiner, Reggie Gilliam

Cut: Hassan Haskins (PS), Jam Miller (Waived /INJ), Lan Larison (PS), and James Hasty (PS)

I stated that I wouldn’t be surprised if Larison got cut and they claimed another running back on waivers. They traded for Kiner instead of waiting. Miller was Waived Injured, which means that if he makes it through waivers he could be put on IR or they could reach an injury settlement.

TE (3) Hunter Henry, Eli Raridon, Tanner Arkin

Cut: Jack Westover and CJ Dippre (both candidates for the PS)

Arkin may be cut if the Patriots can find another player better or have a need at another position (DT DaQuan Jones?). Arkin should pass through waivers to the PS. That would be three TEs on the PS, and each could be elevated 3 times if they need a 3rd TE.

WR (6) A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs, Mack Hollins, Kyle Williams, Demario Douglas, Efton Chism III

Cut: Cameron Dorner (PS), Nick Gennaro, Kyle Dixon (PS), Tejhaun Palmer

The haul for Kayshon Boutte is complete with the acquisition of two depth players (Jaylen Reed and Cory Kiner). Reed is 23 and won’t turn 24 until the end of the season and was a starter in the Texans’ two playoff games last season. Reed’s PFF grade was 88.6 for the two Preseason games he played in. Kiner is 24 and had a PFF Grade of 72.8 for the 4 Preseason games he played in. In the Hall of Fame game, Kiner ran the ball 24 times for 116 yards and 2 TDs.

C (2) Jared Wilson, Ben Brown

Cut: Jacob Rizy (PS), Joe Michalski

Ben Brown not being added to the IR was a surprise and indicates that he is close to returning. Van Roten serves as backup Center. Rizy, an UDFA, played well enough to earn a spot on the Practice Squad.

G (3) Mike Onwenu, Alijah Vera-Tucker, Greg Van Roten

Cut: Darrian Dalcourt, JonDarious Morgan, Jack Conley, Mekhi Butler

An interesting point about newly acquired OL Walter Rouse was that he practiced at both Guard spots and played the final preseason game at RG. The 6’6”, 322-pound behemoth out of Oklahoma was a 2024 6th-round selection by Minnesota. The Patriots got an up-close look at Rouse in last year’s Joint practice with Minnesota. He played in 8 games over two years with the Vikings. This pre-season, his PFF Grade was 71.1, with a pass-blocking grade of 84.1 at RT in the 1st Pre-Season game, and 85.2 at RG in the final Pre-Season game.

T (5) Will Campbell, Morgan Moses, Caleb Lomu, Dametrious Crownover, Walter Rouse

IR/DFR Marcus Bryant

Cut: Lorenz Metz, James Hudson

Rouse is a natural Right Tackle with 51 career starts in college, including the COVID-shortened 2020 season. Is this a signal that Caleb Lomu can’t make the transition to Right Tackle?

Aug 22, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots linebacker Gabe Jacas (50) tackles Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Andy Dalton (14) in the first half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Edward Finan-Imagn Images — **Gabe Jacas. (PHOTO: Edward Finan-Imagn Images)**

Defense 24

DE (2) Dre’Mont Jones, Gabe Jacas

Cut: Jesse Luketa (PS), Bradyn Swinson (PS), Xavier Holmes (PS).

This is the second year that Swinson has not been able to crack the 53-man roster out of camp. Last year he chose to sign with the Practice Squad and later in the season was signed to the 53-man roster on November 15^th. He played in 4 games last season. He may not re-sign with the Patriots and will look for greener pastures elsewhere.

DT (5) Christian Barmore, Milton Williams, Joshua Farmer, Cory Durden, Leonard Taylor

Cut: Jeremiah Pharms (PS), Eric Gregory (PS), Isaiah Iton (PS), and Casey Rogers (PS).

Eliot, do you have DaQuan Jones on speed dial? I would put in claims for DT’s Uah Bernard and McKinley Jackson. Not likely to get either at position 31 in the waiver priority.

ILB (5) Robert Spillane, Christian Elliss, K.J. Britt, Khalil Jacobs, Namdi Obiazor

Cut: Chad Muma, Riley Wilson

Muma has been a major disappointment, and I don’t think he gets signed to PS. They need depth at LB. Don’t be surprised if they claim a Linebacker or sign a Free Agent. Two players on Waivers I like are Jose Ramirez and Joshua Weru, both from Philly.

OLB (2) Elijah Ponder, Quintayvious Hutchins

(PUP) Harold Landry is still on the PUP list, and although Mike Vrabel said after the game Thursday that Landry may be available for week one versus Seattle, he remains on PUP and will miss the first 4 Games. I wouldn’t be surprised if we never see Landry play again for the Patriots. That horrible contract may be one of the reasons why Christian Gonzalez isn’t signed. Landry is owed a guaranteed $16M this year.

Hutchins surprised me. I’ll admit I was down on using a draft pick to take Hutchins when I thought he would be a UDFA. He made some special teams plays against Cleveland, which is why he made the team. Hutchins is a better pass rusher than Jacas at this point.

Cut: Amari Gainer (PS)

CB (6) Christian Gonzalez, Carlton Davis, Marcus Jones, Charles Woods, Kayron Prunty, Channing Canada

Cut: Kindle Vildor, Kobee Minor, Marcellus Dial, Brandon Crossley

Vildor shot himself in the foot in the game versus Cleveland. Channing Canada signed a huge signing bonus and guaranteed contract (for an UDFA) that fully guaranteed the total amount for a year on the Practice Squad. He performed better than that and utilized his 4.36 40 speed on Special Teams. It will be Canada and Prunty as the gunners, with Schooler still out for 4 more weeks.

SS (2) Dell Pettus, Jaylen Reed

Cut: Mike Brown, Peter Manuma (PS)

Brown takes stupid penalties like he did against Philly. He also lost his job as the personal Protector to Dell Pettus. Special Teams was supposed to be his specialty. I would keep Manuma on the PS. Reed started for the vaunted Houston Defense in both playoffs last season. He missed a lot of time with two stints on the IR that limited him to 7 regular-season games. Perhaps this was a better haul for Boutte than I originally thought.

FS (2) Kevin Byard, Craig Woodson

Cut: Eric Butler, John Saunders (PS)

Saunders was the surprise of camp, and I was really shocked he was cut. He had a team-leading 5 Interceptions in camp.

Special Teams 3

Barringer, Andy Borregales, Julian Ashby

PUP: Brenden Schooler

Cut: Matt Haack

Don’t be surprised to see Haack added to the Practice Squad just in case Barringer isn’t ready to go. Haack could be elevated as a Game Day elevation.

Total Players: 53

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About Mark Morse

Merrimack Valley native and lifelong fan of the New England Patriots. My earliest memories of the Patriots were attending as a child with my dad, the off-season practice at Phillips Academy. I was at the Patriots game at Harvard Stadium in 1970 where Bob “Harpo” Gladieux was called out of the stands by the stadium announcer over the PA to play in the game. Analyzing the draft since ESPN first started to televise it in 1980 and former writer for the Lowell Sun Newspaper.

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