New England Patriots 53-man 2018 Full Roster Projection v1.0
By Hal Bent
DEFENSIVE END/EDGE RUSHER: (4)
Starter(s): Adrian Clayborn, Trey Flowers
Back-up(s): Derek Rivers, Deatrich Wise Jr.
Roster Bubble Boy(s): Geneo Grissom, Eric Lee, Keionta Davis, Frank Herron, Trent Harris
The roster crunch in the secondary and at wide receiver again means that while there are five or six viable roster candidates on the edge, there are only four spots available. Gem
Right now, it looks like Flowers, Clayborn and Wise are locks with Rivers–if healthy–the favorite to hold off the rest of the pack. Lee played well coming in off the street and may be tough to release and try to sneak through waivers to the practice squad.
INSIDE LINEBACKER: (5)
Starter(s): Dont’a Hightower, Kyle Van Noy
Back-up(s): Marquis Flowers, Ja’Whaun Bentley, Harvey Langi
Roster Bubble Boy(s): Christian Sam, Elandon Roberts, Nicholas Grigsby
Heading into camp, Hightower and Van Noy are the only locks at inside linebacker. Flowers–who returned on a one-year deal–should make the roster as the third-down specialist playing in nickel and dime packages. Langi–if healthy again–still stands out as a potential contributor ahead of Sam and Bentley.
Roberts is too inconsistent and will likely be beat out by one of the rookies. Right now, it seems more likely Bentley can contribute in a specific role on early downs while Sam will have to fight Grigsby for a practice squad spot.