Patriots: 3 players who will get cut before 2020 season begins

Here are three Patriots who will get cut before the 2020 season begins.

Is it fair to say that Bill Belichick is entering his most important season with the New England Patriots? It’s been regurgitated on numerous occasions the last several months, but that’s only because these are legitimately unprecedented times for the six-time champions.

Not only did the face of the organization, Tom Brady, choose to leave in free agency, but so did a handful of other starters from 2019.

On top of that, New England led the NFL with eight players opting out of the upcoming campaign due to concerns regarding the ongoing pandemic.

Long story short, the Patriots haven’t been forced to overcome this magnitude of roster turnover since perhaps the inception of their dynasty nearly two decades ago. What made their run so impressive was that there was always a sense of stability and familiarity.

That simply isn’t the case now, and that means New England will have its hands full when it comes to cutting players before the start of the season.

With the depth chart as open as we can remember, let’s highlight some fringe roster players who will be jettisoned in the coming weeks.

3. Byron Cowart

We like Byron Cowart’s potential, but he’ll likely need a major injury to make the final roster.

For starters, the Patriots signed veteran Beau Allen to a two-year contract this offseason. Barring a shocking turn of events, the 28-year-old will be the starting DT come Week 1.

Behind him, New England has Adam Butler, who was extremely productive in 2019 despite playing just 47% of the team’s defensive snaps. In 16 games (two starts), the former undrafted talent out of Vanderbilt compiled 26 tackles, six sacks (!), five passes defensed, and nine quarterback hits. We honestly wouldn’t be surprised if he makes the starting job his own if Allen doesn’t hit the ground running.

All of this unfortunately means that Cowart is shaping up to be released. We don’t doubt the Maryland product will land on his feet elsewhere — perhaps on a practice squad — but a future with the Patriots doesn’t seem to be in the cards.