With the New England Patriots opener at the Arizona Cardinals less than a month away, the Patriots have very little time to trim off the fat on the defensive side of the ball. The emergence of many rookies will force the Patriots to be part ways with once roster guarantees, such as Terrance Knighton. With that in mind the Patriots projected roster will be a shakeup from what was thought three months ago.
New England Patriots Roster Projection: Defense
Defensive Tackle (4)
Malcom Brown, Alan Branch, Vincent Valentine, Anthony Johnson
Knighton has played very little this preseason and is most definitely the man who is getting cut in this group. Johnson has been steadily upward trending on the Patriots depth chart after he turned in a series of magnificent defensive performances. Johnson, a former Louisiana State University product who also went undrafted should see playing time.
Editor’s note: the Patriots officially released Terrance Knighton on Monday.
Defensive Ends (7)
Rob Ninkovich, Jabaal Sheard, Chris Long, Shea McClellin, Barkevious Mingo, Trey Flowers, Geneo Grissom
After trading Chandler Jones, many thought the Patriots pass rush was doomed. Instead, the Patriots management went out and got Long and traded for Mingo, two former first round draft choices. The depth at end for the Patriots is quite good this year and even Long himself praised second-year player Flowers for his versatility and worth ethic.
Linebackers (5)
Jamie Collins, Dont’a Hightower, Jonathan Freeny, Kamu Grugier-Hill, Brandon King
Collins, Hightower, and Freeny will round out the linebacking corps for the Patriots. Freeny has developed into a legitimate player at the position, being a former undrafted pick from Rutgers. If need be, the Patriots could also slide Mingo into a hybrid backer. Also good news for the Patriots here is that Elandon Roberts is worthy of the practice squad.
Cornerbacks (5)
Malcolm Butler, Logan Ryan, Cyrus Jones, Justin Coleman, Cre’von LeBlanc
Butler and Ryan have been the leaders of this group for the last two seasons and there should be no reason as to why that shouldn’t continue. LeBlanc has been a bit of a surprise for the Patriots, and a very good one. He played a team high 59 snaps and also made a very athletic one-handed interception in the preseason opener vs the New Orleans Saints. LeBlanc could see some time in certain situations.
Safeties (5)
Devin McCourty, Patrick Chung, Duron Harmon, Jordan Richards, Nate Ebner
From top to bottom this position is one that is the team for the Patriots. The return of Chung added some much needed help for the Patriots and McCourty is one of the best at what he does.
Specialists (4)
Ryan Allen, Joe Cardona, Stephen Gostkowski, Matthew Slater
Special teams has been a reliable phase of the game for the Patriots and despite Cardona’s low snap that led to a missed field in the Panthers games, his long snapping should not be in jeopardy. Slater has been a perennial Pro Bowl candidate for the team as well.
In total, the Patriots should head into the regular season with 30 on the active roster for defense, which excludes injured or players that have suspended.
Be sure and check out the Patriots roster projection on offense.
