Welcome to Saturday, otherwise known as NFL cutdown day. We're going to put all the news and information that comes out in one place with our analysis so you can just keep coming back to this page and not having to click on individual stories (which is how you know which outlet is a clickbait factory — there are plenty of those out there):
--Here's our Live Coverage from Friday, which included a look at the first series of cuts, as well as the trade of Jordan Richards to the Falcons.
--Here's Greg's final version of the 53-man roster.
6:17 p.m.: Here's the 52-man roster. (One open spot at this point, and another will open up after Ryan Izzo is placed on IR.)
Offense -- 21
WRs (3): Hogan, Patterson, Dorsett
TEs (4): Gronkowski, Allen, Hollister, Izzo*
OL (7): T. Brown, Waddle, Thuney, Karras, Andrews, Mason, Cannon
RBs (4): Hill, Burkhead, White, Michel
FB (1): Develin
QBs (2): Brady, Hoyer
Defense -- 24
DL (10): Wise, Flowers, Shelton, Guy, Rivers, Grissom, Davis, Clayborn, M. Brown, Butler
LB (4): Hightower, Bentley, Van Noy, Roberts
CB (6): Gilmore, Rowe, Jones, Crossen, Jackson, Dawson
S (4): Chung, Harmon, D. McCourty, J. McCourty
Special Teams (7): Slater, Ebner, King, Grigsby, Cardona, Allen, Gostkowski.
*Izzo is expected to go on IR, which will open another roster spot.
5:20 p.m.: What appears to be the final wave of moves is starting. According to Field Yates, the Patriots are letting go of wide receiver Riley McCarron and running back Brandon Bolden. I'd expect Bolden back in some form or fashion -- he was released the same time last year and returned. (He can be brought back after they place Michel on short-term IR, theoretically.) But the McCarron move is a surprise. They could be doing the same thing with him, or there could be an expected move for a wide receiver. (And who's going to return punts?) Another shoe to drop, as it were. New England has also parted ways with tight end Will Tye.
5:07 p.m.: Linebacker Harvey Langi has been let go. He's a PS candidate if they can get him through waivers. And per reports, Geneo Grissom has made the 53-man roster.
4:40 p.m.: It also sounds an awful lot like Jason McCourty has made the team. That would give New England a secondary that'll look something like this...
Cornerback: Stephon Gilmore, Eric Rowe, Jonathan Jones, Keion Crossen, J.C. Jackson, Duke Dawson.
Safety: Patrick Chung, Duron Harmon, Devin McCourty, Jason McCourty, Nate Ebner.
4:34 p.m.: Matt Tobin has been released, per reports. And it sounds like, via another source, that Teddy Karras has made the team. That would likely leave the offensive line backups as Karras, Cole Croston and LaAdrian Waddle.
4:10 p.m.: As of right now -- keeping in mind there's still potential for a LOT roster shuffling -- it sounds like Keion Crossen and J.C. Jackson have both survived cutdowns, per sources. I have not heard anything one way or another, but there are several reports Jason McCourty has survived as well.
4:00 p.m.: Marquis Flowers has been let go, per a league source. Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald had it first.
3:55 p.m.: Just about five minutes left, and there are some intriguing names still in limbo.
3:35 p.m.: A.J. Moore has been released, per reports.
3:22 p.m.: Danny Etling has been released, according to Mark Daniels of the Providence Journal. He's PS eligible. We'll always have North Jersey, Danny,
DANNY VICKLING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!pic.twitter.com/i6hlcoFa2v
— Prime Bam Childress (@fearthe_beard11) August 31, 2018
3:08 p.m.: Corey Bojorquez -- the punter with the big leg -- has been informed of his release. Wouldn't surprise me in the least if he landed on the practice squad.
3:00 p.m.: Cornerback Jomal Wiltz has been cut, per a league source. Practice squad remains a possibility.
2:20 p.m.: RB Mike Gillislee has been cut. You would have to think this bodes well when it comes to the health of Rex Burkhead (and perhaps Sony Michel, but that's a whole different matter). But for now, it appears that Jeremy Hill will get the primary between-the-tackles role.
2:06 p.m.: Interesting that QB Luke Falk was one of the Titans' cuts today. The guy is a Brady disciple.
1:53 p.m.: Looks like the Foxborough Flu has claimed another victim. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Braxton Berrios is going on injured reserve. Between Berrios' "injury" and the decision to cut ties with Jones, have to believe Riley McCarron has made the final 53. And things are also certainly trending in the right direction for rookie Keion Crossen.
1:37 p.m.: The Patriots have reportedly cut CB Cyrus Jones, per Jeff Howe of The Athletic. This move not only impacts the cornerback situation (it increases the likelihood of rookies J.C. Jackson and Keion Crossen making the team), it also means that Riley McCarron, who appeared to work well as a punt returner, could have a role on special teams, at least over the first month of the season without Julian Edelman.
With Jones' release, the Patriots don't have one of their second-round picks since 2011 on the roster. (They're 0-fo- 8). And '18 pick Duke Dawson has barely been on practice field. Testament to coaches, Brady and doing better in later rounds.
From Bill Belichick's conference call on Friday:
Q: It’s been one year since Cyrus Jones injured his knee. Have you seen him in the spring and the summer start to return to the explosive athlete he was before the injury?
BB: Yes. Absolutely. I wish in these last two games we could have had an opportunity to get him started in the return game. He had a couple chances that I thought he did well with in Carolina but he really didn’t have much yesterday. They were kick-offs or touchbacks and we didn’t block well enough on the returns really to give him a chance to do anything but handle the ball. I thought he handled the ball well in some fairly challenging ball-handling situations. He did a fine job of that, that was no problem. I just – he really didn’t get a chance to get started and of course we would have liked to have seen that but that’s the way it goes.
1:13 p.m.: The Patriots have cut WR KJ Maye, who played very well in the preseason finale against the Giants. He does have practice squad eligibility, if New England can get him through. The count right now stands at 71 players.
1:10 p.m.: Bedard's analysis — Let me just say this about the Khalil Mack trade (and be thankful he's out of the AFC). You’ll hear a lot of takes on it by a lot of smart people and many will say it’s about the Bears viewing themselves as contenders, and the Raiders saying they are rebuilding. Forget that stuff. This is what it boils down to. Bears GM Ryan Pace is trying to keep his job. It’s his fourth season and he has to produce a winner. Raiders owner Mark Davis has no money until the team moves to Las Vegas, and he couldn’t cut a huge check to Mack. That’s it.
1:04 p.m.: Just a thought -- not sure they could convince him, but 35-year-old defensive end Brian Robison has that same sort of "veteran defensive player near the end of his career who might have one more year left" vibe to him that frequently appeals to the Patriots. Let go by Minnesota today.
12:48 p.m.: The Patriots have cut defensive lineman Vincent Valentine, according to multiple reports. And according to Mike Reiss of ESPN, the Patriots intend to place rookie tight end Ryan Izzo on injured reserve. The Valentine news was a bit of a surprise -- it was my feeling he had a pretty good summer after coming back from a knee injury that kept him out all last year. (Maybe this says more about Malcom Brown than anything? I thought Brown would be a trade candidate and Valentine could become a DT backup. Maybe not.) I also wonder if this is a vote of confidence for Adam Butler as someone who could be more of a force in base defenses. We shall see.
12:37 p.m.: Defensive end Eric Lee and defensive lineman John Atkins have both reportedly been released. Lee did have a solid background in the system -- he delivered a key play in last year's win over the Bills in Buffalo -- but has been squeezed out of the picture with an occasionally underwhelming offseason. As for Atkins, he ran into a logjam along the defensive line. One of the deepest areas for New England. Both have practice squad eligibility. The Lee transaction was first reported by Kevin Duffy, while Doug Kyed was first on Atkins. By my count, the Patriots are now at 74 players, and need to get to 53 by 4 p.m.
12:27 p.m.: A couple of former Patriots -- Matt Lengel (Houston) and Cre'Von LeBlanc (Chicago) -- have reportedly been let go.
12:19 p.m.: The Patriots have released defensive back Damarius Travis, according to a league source. He does have practice squad eligibility.
11:55 a.m.: Per a league source, Ulrick John has a torn tendon in his foot that will require surgery, and is expected to be out for the year. A tough break for the tackle, who was having an excellent summer. He had thrust himself into the mix as a possible backup/swing tackle. It will be interesting to see what happens at that spot moving forward.
Bedard’s analysis: This is a tough blow for my favorite — at least based on what we saw between camp and games — to be the fourth tackle on the roster. The Patriots may very well not keep one (I didn’t in my final 53) if they feel good about where Marcus Cannon is health-wise. Matt Tobin is the only other option on the roster and, while he’s serviceable and not that far behind John, he might not be worth the roster spot or there could be better options on the waiver wire.
11:44 a.m.: The Patriots and OL Luke Bowanko will reach an injury settlement, per a league source.
11:20 a.m.: The Patriots have waived RB Ralph Webb. The youngster flashed positively at times in the preseason, but remains a practice squad possibility.
8:40 a.m.: Good morning!
Sources to ESPN: Raiders and Bears have an agreement in place to trade Khalil Mack to Chicago. Still working through it, but Raiders now planning to send Mack to Chicago.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 1, 2018
From a Patriots' perspective, this is a good thing. The idea of him with the Jets (which had been a rumor in recent days) going up against New England twice a year? Although the Patriots-Bears game in Chicago on Oct. 21 should be fun.
8:35 a.m.: After Friday's moves, the Patriots' roster currently stands at 83 players. It needs to be at 53 by 4 p.m.