Bedard: 5 Patriots players most in danger of losing their roster spots

Of the 52 Patriots players who ended the 2019 season on the roster, 13 are no longer here, including starters Tom Brady, Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins and Danny Shelton (not including the kicker, Nick Folk).

 

There are at least seven players coming back from injured reserve who will be in the mix for roster spots: center David Andrews, guard Hjlate Froholdt, linebacker Brandon King, tackle Yodny Cajuste, end Derek Rivers, receiver Gunner Olszewski and fullback Jakob Johnson (7).

From the practice squad, guard/center Najee Toran and linebacker Terez Hall have the best chances to land on the roster (2).

The Patriots drafted five players in the first three rounds of the draft, with kicker Justin Rohrwasser guaranteed the kicker spot (or at least someone will have it) — (5).

In free agency, the Patriots added nine players who will be in the mix for the roster, if not starting spots: QBs Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer, WRs Damiere Byrd and Marqise Lee, FB Dan Vitale, DT Beau Allen, OLB Brandon Copeland, S Adrian Phillips and ST/S Cody Davis (9).

I'm no math major, but that means the Patriots have 23 players for 13 spots — and that's not even counting undrafted free agents and other players who sneak their way onto the roster.

That means some healthy competition for some incumbents. A look at the top five who could be in danger of losing their roster spots when/if training camp starts in 11 days:

OG Jermaine Eluemunor (cap savings: $2.133 million)

The Patriots obviously weren't impressed early on with fourth-round pick Hjlate Froholdt because they went out and traded a fourth to the rival Ravens for the guard, who was looking like he was going to get cut in any event. And Eluemunor didn't set the world on fire in New England because when Isaiah Wynn wasn't ready to go to start the season at left tackle, the Patriots looked at moving Joe Thuney there, but quickly decided against it. If the team felt Eluemunor could have done a serviceable job, the Patriots might have been better off with Thuney at left tackle. That's pretty telling. The Patriots now have multiple cheaper options (Najee Toran, Micheal Onwenu, Justin Herron) at backup guard, so Eluemunor is going to have to come to play or he's an easy avenue to gain cap space.

OT Korey Cunningham (cap savings: $750,o00)

Another trade (sixth-round pick to Arizona) that didn't amount to much because Cunningham didn't enter the equation at left tackle either. Marcus Cannon could have been moved over there if Cunningham was a capable starter and that also did not happen, outside of a gameday emergency swap. He was inactive for 13 games and the playoff loss to the Titans. Patriots now have Yodny Cajuste (2019 third-round pick) and Justin Herron (2020 sixth-round pick) ready to go as options if Cunningham doesn't grab a job.

Marcus Cannon (cap savings: $4.49 million)

In a perfect world for the Patriots, Cajuste has a terrific camp and supplants Cannon as the starter, which would free up a good chunk of cap space. Herron would also need to prove he's a solid backup option at both tackles spots for that to happen. I think that's a longshot, but the Patriots could find another tackle option on another roster again. I think it's more likely, Cannon comes back in great shape from an average 2019 season, reasserts himself as a very good right tackle, and Cajuste is the swing tackle — eliminating the need for Cunningham.

Deatrich Wise (cap savings: $1.9 million)

The Patriots tried to make a square peg fit in a round hole last year when they had Wise, who is a better 4-3 end, play end in the 3-4 they wound up having due to personnel. The hope was Wise could fill the old Bobby Hamilton role, but he just can't hold up against the run nearly as well and it was a problem. Wise is a good player, he just doesn't fit this scheme as well as his first couple of years and there are many more options on the roster, either on the edge (Josh Uche, Derek Rivers, UDFA Nick Coe, UDFA Trevon Hill) or inside (Byron Cowart, Nick Thurman). The team loves Wise. He's a tireless worker and a bit of a leader (he could be a captain), so he might stick around for another year. But at the end of the day, it's hard to see a role in which he excels for this team with cheaper options around.

Mohamed Sanu (cap savings: $6.5 million)

That cap number is going to be hanging over his head the entire camp. What we saw in 2019 was not the real Sanu — he was hobbled by an ankle injury the entire second half of the season. He's a very good possession receiver and an asset in the red zone when fully healthy, and the Patriots need as many of those as possible. Plus, his size and strength will fit well with a power running game, and as a big slot, he should be an asset with Newton's strengths as a passer. So I think the Patriots will give this a go for a while — especially considering the second-round pick they traded to get him — but the Patriots have a whole host of young slot players (Jakobi Meyers, Olszewski, Devin Ross and UDFAs Will Hastings, Sean Riley and Jeff Thomas) who could make it appealing for the Patriots to take back $6.5 million in cap space.