Patriots Roster Predictions

Tomorrow marks the day that our New England Patriots can begin the process of washing the bad taste out of their mouths from the AFC Championship Game loss to the Colts and start preparing for a run at the franchise's fourth Super Bowl championship since 2001. The loss to the Colts was a tough one for the team to swallow -- they led at halftime on the road by a 21-6 score before losing 38-34. The Patriots had the ball with under a minute to play but a Tom Brady pass was intercepted, sealing New England's fate. The Colts went on to defeat the Bears in Super Bowl XLI. With a team coming back that was just minutes away from another trip to the Super Bowl, some might think that Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli would stand pat and make only some minor additions. Some people would be terribly wrong. The Patriots reloaded this offseason, adding multiple players who should make important contributions in 2007. On defense the team signed Pro Bowl linebacker Adalius Thomas away from Baltimore and also added free agent cornerback Tory James from Cincinnati. In the Draft, the Pats took Miami Hurricane safety Brandon Meriweather and his teammate at "The U", tackle Kareem Brown as well as USC linebacker Oscar Lua. Belichick and Pioli didn't stop with the defense. On offense the team signed receivers Donte' Stallworth from the Philadelphia and Kelly Washington from Cincinnati and traded for receivers Randy Moss from Oakland and Wes Welker from Miami. They also signed tight end Kyle Brady from Jacksonville to replace the departed Daniel Graham and running back Sammy Morris from Miami. In the Draft the team added offensive lineman Clint Oldenburg from Colorado State, Corey Hilliard from Oklahoma State and Mike Elgin from Iowa. As for how the team could start the season (Sunday, September 9 in the Meadowlands against Mangini's Jets, only 46 days to go!) this is my prediction on how the Opening Day 53-man roster will look like. QB (2): Tom Brady, Matt Cassel I think Belichick will only go with two quarterbacks on the roster so he can have flexibility at some other positions. Long time veteran Vinny Testaverde, who was with the team at the end of 2006, and rookie undrafted free agent Matt Gutierrez will provide insurance. RB (4): Laurence Maroney, Kevin Faulk, Sammy Morris, Heath Evans With an offense built around throwing the ball, not too many roster spots will be kept for the runners. I worry about Maroney's shoulder but if he is healthy enough to get through at least 14 games, the Pats should have no problem running the ball. Faulk, Morris and Evans all are proven secondary runners. WR (6): Randy Moss, Donte' Stallworth, Wes Welker, Troy Brown, Jabar Gaffney, Reche Caldwell After spending the first six years of his career throwing to some very good receivers, Brady now has the opportunity to pass to an All-Pro in Moss and overall the deepest receiving corps in his time in New England. Moss and Stallworth give him big targets on the outside while Welker is potential 80-catch guy in the slot. Brown is back for what will probably be the last year in a great career and both Gaffney and Caldwell worked well with Brady last season. Kelly Washington could either be released or traded to a team sometime in August. 2006 second round pick Chad Jackson will start the year on the physically unable to perform list (PUP) and could either be in their long term plans or insurance for the second half of 2007. TE (4): Ben Watson, Kyle Brady, Dave Thomas, Garrett Mills Watson should finally have the breakout year everyone is waiting for considering the space that should be created for him by Moss, Stallworth and Welker. Brady replaces Graham's blocking. Thomas contributed in small doses as a rookie and showed off some very good hands. Mills was hurt as a rookie in 2006 but has potential as an H-Back. OL (9): Matt Light, Logan Mankins, Dan Koppen, Stephen Neal, Ryan O'Callaghan, Nick Kaczur, Russ Hochstein, Gene Mruczkowski, Clint Oldenburg The starting unit of will definitely consist of Light (LT), Mankins (LG), Koppen (C) and Neal (RG) with O'Callaghan and Kaczur probably fighting it out at RT. Hochstein and Mruczkowski provide depth at guard and center and the rookie Oldenburg could be a sleeper at tackle. K (1): Stephen Gostkowski Was better than expected in replacing Vinatieri. Needs to avoid a sophomore slump. LS (1): Lonie Paxton One of the best at what he does. DL (6): Richard Seymour, Ty Warren, Vince Wilfork, Jarvis Green, Mike Wright, Kareem Brown The trio of Seymour, Warren and Wilfork is as good as any in the NFl today and one day could be considered among the best of all-time. Green is a versatile reserve and Wright is a physical presence off the bench. Brown, taken in the fourth round, was a good pass rusher at Miami last year and could provide some very good depth. LB (9): Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, Adalius Thomas, Roosevelt Colvin, Junior Seau, Chad Brown, Oscar Lua, Larry Izzo, Eric Alexander This is an older group but if they stay healthy, the linebackers should be a bright spot. Bruschi, Vrabel, Thomas, Colvin and Seau will be the top five 'backers with depth coming from Brown, Lua and Alexander. Izzo, Alexander and Lua will also backbone the special teams. CB (5): Asante Samuel, Ellis Hobbs, Randall Gay, Chad Scott, Tory James Samuel is obviously the biggest question mark for the Patriots on the eve of training camp but with Chicago coming to terms with their franchise player, linebacker Lance Briggs, yesterday -- and he was very outspoken against the Bears, much more so than Samuel with the Pats -- I think Samuel will be back with the team sooner than later. With Samuel and Hobbs starting and Gay, Scott and James behind them, the team has a good veteran corps at cornerback. S (5): Rodney Harrison, Eugene Wilson, Artrell Hawkins, Brandon Meriweather, James Sanders If healthy, this is another top flight unit for Belichick's defense. Harrison, Wilson and Hawkins are a very good top three and Meriweather is a highly touted rookie. Sanders, who should beat out Tebucky Jones, will give them depth and a special teams presence. P (1): Josh Miller If all goes well with Brady & Co., won't see too much extended work. Belichick and Pioli will have some extremly hard decisions to make with the roster. They will end up releasing players or trading players that will make positive impacts in other places. The depth of talent the team has on both sides of the ball and at almost every position is the envy of the entire NFL. Anything can happen in the game of football (as it often does) but this roster is built to win the Super Bowl.