New England Patriots' Depth Chart - Updated Daily

At present, the Patriots look better on paper than they did last season, with the exception of defensive end, which should be addressed in the draft...

Quarterbacks

Tom Brady
Jimmy Garoppolo
Jacoby Brissett

Will he stay or will he go?  Crazy rumors floating around involving Jimmy Clipboard, with the craziest being Cleveland talking crazy compensation.  Crazy.

Running Backs

James White

Dion Lewis
Tyler Gaffney
D.J. Foster
James Develin
Glenn Gronkowski

Is Gaffney a viable power back?  The consensus is, who knows?  The duck-footed 220 pounder from Stanford hasn't played an NFL down, but looks good in preseason and in practice.  The Patriots are all set at the passing back position and Lewis could be the featured back - but look for Belichick to bring in some reinforcements.

Wide Recievers

Julian Edelman
Danny Amendola
Chris Hogan
Malcolm Mitchell
Devin Lucien
Matthew Slater
De'Andrew White

With four solid pass catchers that have tons of experience, there shouldn't be a need for anything but maybe a speedy lid lifter.  Brandin Cooks has been rumored, but rumors are rumors...

Tight Ends

Rob Gronkowski
Dwayne Allen
Rob Housler
Matt Lengel

Dwayne Allen could be described as a poor man's Martellus Bennett, while Housler is a pass catcher only and Lengel makes his bones blocking.

Offensive Tackles

Nate Solder
LaAdrian Waddle
Marcus Cannon
Cam Fleming
Michael Williams

Solder had a terrible first half of last season, but came on at the end, while Cannon had such a great season that he was named a second-team All Pro.  Solder's cap hit is enormous going forward, so look for Belichick to take a tackle early in the draft.

Offensive Gurads

Joe Thuney
Shaq Mason
Tre Jackson
Chase Farris
Chris Barker
Jamil Douglass

Thuney was roughed up in pass protection in his rookie year, but Mason made great strides and was the most improved player on the team.  If Jackson comes back healthy, he represents quality depth.

Centers

David Andrews
Ted Karras

Both players are mean scrappers.  No need to upset that apple cart.

Defensive Tackles

Alan Branch
Malcolm Brown
Vincent Valentine
Woodrow Hamilton
Darius Kilgo

With a rotation like the Patriots have on the interior, they dominate late in games when the stops really matter.  A very solid group.


Defensive Ends

Trey Flowers
Rob Ninkovich
Geneo Grissom
Kony Ealy

Yikes!  Flowers and nink are quality players, with Flowers ready to explode onto the elite scene, but quality depth is needed in a hurry.  Breaking update:  Patriots have acquired defensive end Kony Ealy and a third-round pick from the Carolina Panthers in exchange for their second-round pick in the 2017 Draft.


Linebackers

Kyle Van Noy
Shea McClellin
Elandon Roberts
Trevor Bates
Jonathan Freeney

Van Noy emerged as a leader in the middle of the defense late last season, and McClellin's star is on the rise.  Roberts is a downhill run stuffer with no fear at all.  Still, a linebacker should be in the offing in the first couple of rounds of the draft.


Cornerbacks

Stephon Gilmore
Malcolm Butler
Eric Rowe
Cyrus Jones
Jonathan Jones

Gilmore, Butler and Rowe represent the best set of corners in the league - if they remain together.  At this point, it doesn't make any sense to break them up, not even for Cooks, who is rumored to be in a deal for Butler going to the Saints.


Safeties

Devin McCourty
Patrick Chung
Duron Harmon
Nate Ebner
Jordan Richards

McCourty, Chung and Harmon represent the best set of safeties in the league, and allow Belichick to run his Big Nickel without fear.


Kickers

Joe Cardona
Ryan Allen
Stephen Gostkowski