With their preseason finale in the books, the next big step of the offseason for the New England Patriots is trimming down their roster. The team has to get the 90-man roster down to 53 players by the league deadline of Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
While the bulk of cuts usually come the day of leading up to the deadline, the Patriots got started with cuts on Friday morning. Speaking to the media Friday afternoon, head coach Mike Vrabel told reporters the team has informed 14 players of their intention to release them. Those 14 players are…
QB Ben Wooldridge
RB Micah Bernard
RB Shane Watts
WR Phil Lutz
TE Cole Fotheringham
TE Jaheim Bell
G Sidy Sow
G Tyrese Robinson
DT Kyle Peko
DT Philip Blidi
LB RJ Moten
LB Monty Rice
DB Jordan Polk
DB Isaiah Bolden
None of those 14 players had looked like they were on track to make the 53-man roster in recent weeks. However a few did project to be practice squad candidates such as Wooldridge, Fotheringham, Sow, Peko, and Polk. The Patriots still could re-sign any of them to the practice squad once they clear waivers, but that process can’t begin until after Tuesday’s deadline passes.
Wooldridge in particular stands out, as the team now has just two quarterbacks in the building in Drake Maye and Joshua Dobbs. Vrabel did not rule out adding a third QB at some point, when asked to assess the depth of the position on Friday.
“We’re there at two,” he said. “We’ll decide about who is and if we plan about carrying a third quarterback on the 53 or on the practice squad.”
These moves get the Patriots down to 76 players on the roster, assuming they’re going to carry over the IPP designation for DT David Olajiga. There was a report on Thursday that wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk will have season-ending shoulder surgery – if he’s placed on season-ending IR that would open up another spot.
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