Measuring the moves the Patriots made the last couple of days and their impact on the salary cap.
1. Promoted wide receiver Riley McCarron from the practice squad to the 53-man roster. I'm presuming McCarron received a one-year deal that made his 2018 salary $480,000.
2. Signed offensive tackle Eric Smith to the practice squad. ESPN's Mike Reiss reported Smith's salary will be $340,000, which is significantly more than the minimum salary for a practice squad player -- usually $129,200.
3. Signed tight end Stephen Anderson to the practice squad. For the time being, I'm presuming Anderson is receiving the practice squad minimum.
4. Waived wide receiver Amara Darboh with a failed physical designation. After clearing waivers Darboh is now a street free agent. There is no dead money on the Patriots salary cap resulting from this release.
5. Placed cornerback Duke Dawson on injured reserve (IR). Dawson is eligible to be designated to return later this season. He must miss at least eight games, so the earliest he can return is the Week 9 game against the Packers. Dawson's cap number will remain at $862,705.
6. Reached an injury settlement with tight end Will Tye. Don't yet know the details of the settlement. Do know that it will lower his cap number from $433,000.
7. Signed offensive lineman Brian Schwenke to a one-year deal. He received a $25,000 bonus -- his cap number is $655,000.
8. Learned the details of the injury settlement reached with offensive lineman Luke Bowanko. He was paid $161,647. Since Bowanko's settlement covers six weeks, the earliest he can re-sign with the Patriots is after Week 9.
Answering some logical follow-up questions:
Question: Who are the current members of the Patriots practice squad?
Answer:
- Cole Croston
- Danny Etling
- Eric Smith
- Jace Billingsley
- James Ferentz
- Jomal Wiltz
- Ralph Webb
- Stephen Anderson
- Trent Harris
- Vincent Valentine
- Isaiah Wynn
- Duke Dawson
- Ryan Izzo
- Braxton Berrios
- Christian Sam
- Ulrick John
