A Day to Dream

Bon chance, Jonathan Freeny.

I'm feeling okay with the players who've been in Foxborough prepping for the 2017 season. They know the playbook. They know the routine. If the Patriots are carrying a 5th wide receiver, I'd go with Austin Carr or Devin Lucien rather than give something up in a trade (even a 7th rounder) or hope against hope that someone with the talent to contribute on game day is going to fall all the way down the waiver wire to New England.

But the local pigskin pundits and bobbleheads have me spooked, insisting Belichick will be picking up a player or two or three today, looking for a slot receiver/punt return guy, some depth at DE, an offensive lineman, something.

So, yeah, I took a look at Victor Cruz's career stats. Cruz was cut by the Bears. Da Bears! Can you name a wide receiver on the Bears? Probably not a good sign. Cruz had a catch rate under 50% last year. Definitely not a good sign.

Now, I believe the Patriots do things differently from the Other 31. That includes how they look at players and what they can do in the specific context of their offense, defense, and special teams. Still, when every other GM says nah to a player you have to wonder. I'm not saying there aren't other well-run franchises out there that - like New England - are going to have to release players they would like to keep. I am saying none of those players get past the Jets, Jags, 49ers, or any of the other franchises claiming ahead of the Patriots.

Can the Patriots hang onto Carr, Lucien, D.J. Foster, or personal favorite Jacob Hollister? The odds would not seem to be in their favor.

I just stopped to check out how old OT Eric Winston is following news he was cut by the Bengals. This despite my impression the Bengals offensive line is a mess. I'm still concerned with Nate Solder's health and the possibility of starting the season with Cameron Fleming at left tackle.

Winston is 33 and hasn't been a full-time starter for three years. Winston was good once upon a time a long time ago.

Yeah, not so easy finding offensive tackles or defensive ends who can play on the waiver wire.

Could former Midshipman Keenan Reynolds, late of the Baltimore Ravens, find a spot in Foxborough as punt return specialist? Wait-What? Reynolds fumbled a punt in the Ravens final preseason game? Maybe we'll be okay if Danny Amendola just fair catches all the punts this year.

The Browns just cut old friend Josh Boyce. He's familiar with the system, at least. Could he return punts? Then again, there must've been a reason Belichick let him go in the first place. Practice squad depth at WR? Better to hope Carr or Lucien slip past the Jets and make it to the practice squad?

We'll see.

It's worth remembering here that Bill Belichick's roster is never final.

With the Patriots practicing today we probably won't see any additional cuts announced until closer to today's 4:00 pm deadline. Maybe another trade before close of business. Through the weekend there will be churn at the bottom of the roster as Belichick and Nick Caserio pick through late cuts from the Other 31. There's a practice squad to put together, too.

But really, that's just the end of the beginning.