Patriots Notebook: Free agent OT Jared Veldheer visits, dates set for rookie minicamp

Offensive tackle Jared Veldheer had a visit with the Patriots, per a league source.


The 31-year-old veteran has an extensive NFL resume — he’s been in the league for nine seasons, including four years with the Raiders, four with the Cardinals and one season with the Broncos. The 6-foot-8, 321-pounder has played 25 games the last two seasons, including 12 with Denver in 2018.

The Patriots could use some help when it comes to the swing tackle spot on the roster — they lost LaAdrian Waddle in free agency, and Isaiah Wynn is coming off a year on injured reserve. (Rookie Yodny Cajuste could be a part of the conversation here as well.) Considering the fact that he’s a relatively sturdy veteran who could come cheap, he could very well be in the mix when it comes to a spot in New England.

One thing to keep in mind? It’s likely he’d count against the Patriots when it comes to the compensatory pick formula, so I’d expect no team would officially move on Veldheer until after the May 7 deadline.

Ready, rookies?

The league announced the rookie minicamp schedules for each team on Tuesday, and the Patriots’ rookie minicamp will run from May 10-12 — the 10 members of New England’s draft class are expected to be present, along with the undrafted free agents who were added shortly after the draft concluded.

The rest of the offseason program remains the same. The veterans are going through Phase II of the offseason program now, but things will ramp up toward the end of May when the OTAs are set to begin. We will have access to those workouts on May 20-21, May 23, May 29-30 and June 10-11. Mandatory minicamp is scheduled for June 4-6.

BC still tops

Updating one of our favorite draft stats — Boston College remains the most popular school when it comes to Patriots’ draft history. New England didn’t draft anyone from BC this time around, but the Eagles still hold the top spot with 23 all-time picks in Patriots’ franchise history. Here’s a look at the best of the rest, which includes this year’s crop: 2. Michigan (19 picks); 3. Notre Dame (17); 4. LSU, Miami (15 picks each); 6. Florida, Georgia, Arkansas (14 picks each).