Throughout Bill Belichick's tenure in New England, the Patriots were consistently one of the few teams that had an undrafted player make the roster, and more often than not, they managed to turn that player into a star of their team. That pattern seemed to die off over the later years of his time in Foxboro, but that looks to be changing now that Mike Vrabel is in the building.
Two players maintained their spots atop the leaderboard to be the lucky ones to snag a roster spot on the offense: WR Efton Chism III and RB Lan Larison. Unfortunately for Larison, he suffered an injury that forced the Patriots to place him on injured reserve last week, subsequently ending his season before it began.
But Chism has continued to raise his stock during practice and over the last two preseason games, with perhaps his most impressive efforts coming against the Vikings on Saturday afternoon. He has presumably secured a spot on the team's offense for the season ahead, making the locks up to four as they prepare for their final preseason game.
That leaves at least two spots up for grabs, and the competition for those continues to get hotter by the day.
The Patriots' receiving corps is already shaping up, with only a few spots still unsecured
Assuming the Patriots' roster locks at wide receiver are Chism, Stefon Diggs, DeMario Douglas, and Kyle Williams, it is believed that Josh McDaniels will want at least six players on the team, if not up to eight. He has historically had seven receivers on the offense during his time as the team's offensive coordinator, so there could still be three spots to be competed for.
Of the other players who are actively hoping to secure a locker for the upcoming season, Javon Baker and Kayshon Boutte appear to have the best chances. Both have shone in practice and had some impressive moments in preseason games, with Boutte looking like a clear starter and Baker potentially destined for special teams.
There's also Mack Hollins, whom the Patriots signed in free agency, and despite the apparent lack of popularity amongst the fans, the former Bills weapon looks like exactly the kind of player Maye could seriously use on game day, with the most obvious reason being his size. It's likely he's a roster lock, too, even if most fans wish he wouldn't be.
Kendrick Bourne is another name to monitor, as he had the best season of his career with Josh McDaniels in 2021. He's been nearly nonexistent in training camp thus far, which makes it seem like he's far from securing a place on the roster, but he might be worthy of keeping around because of his proven success with the offensive coordinator.
At this point, it's a wide-open door for the players to walk through, and there is still plenty of time for someone to leapfrog someone who had otherwise looked well on his way to making the team. We'll have to see how the next week of practice goes, along with the final preseason game, to see what the receiving corps might look like this fall.