Jake Ballard and Daniel Fells Getting Cut = Good News About Rob Gronkowski

Tomorrow is the official deadline (4 p.m.) for all NFL teams to whittle their rosters down to 53 guys for the start of the 2013 regular season which is tricky business when they had 75 for the last preseason game on Thursday. The Patriots got a head start (of course) by dumping 10 players this afternoon, the most notable being tight ends Daniel Fells and Jake Ballard. Everyone else were no-names that had not a shot to make it, sorry.

Most bozo fans and newscasters are focused on Tim Tebow (spoiler alert: I don't think he'll be cut) but today's moves tell me that New England believes Rob Gronkowski will be back sooner than Pats beat writers have led us to believe (PUP list or bust!). I still don't think he'll be out there for the season opener a week from Sunday in his hometown-Buffalo-but that's ok. What's more important is making sure that he'll be healthy at the end of the season, something which hasn't happened the last two years.

It also indicates that rookie Zach Sudfeld could be the starter in Week 1 (fantasy alert!) while Michael Hoomanawanui will still hang around even though nobody has ever really elaborated on what he does well other than fill a jersey with his absurd name. Stay tuned tomorrow for when things really start to get interesting, you can always expect a big name or unexpected cut or two. Adrian Wilson?

Tweet


Follow @RichSlate

Just A Normal Tuesday In Foxborough: Stallworth Put On IR, Shiancoe Released & Branch Returns?

If you are going to play in one game in an NFL regular season and literally make one play, it's hard to top the way Patriots wide receiver Donte' Stallworth went out in 2012. He caught a 63-yard touchdown from Tom Brady (with one hand!) on Monday night which made it 28-0 New England and today, he went to IR with an ankle injury.

I guess it got lost in the shuffle of the 42-14 blowout victory over the Texans but apparently he sat out the last 25 minutes of the game. I don't remember one mention of that fact, I guess the Pats beat writers were too busy getting their stories done early. With Julian Edelman already on IR, the Patriots are very thin at wide receiver. That means that Deion Branch should be back as soon as tomorrow for the third time this season. His locker was kept just how he left it for him since he was waived on November 17-to deal with a hamstring injury.

In other Pats roster moves, they released tight end Visanthe Shiancoe from the 53-man roster and offensive lineman Tommie Draheim from the practice squad. To say that Shiancoe was a complete non-factor would be a big understatement. Hell even Kellen Winslow caught a pass the one week he was here. Haha bet you forgot about that. After going on IR (with the designation to return), Shiancoe "played" in the last four games but had zero impact-no catches.

All you have to know is that he was beaten out by Daniel Fells and Michael Hoomanawanui while Rob Gronkowski is out with his broken forearm. I doubt that New England would sign another tight end since they also have Aaron Hernandez and Gronk can't be that far away from getting back on the field. However, you never know with this team. Perhaps Ben Coates or Kyle Brady will return. Haha just kidding.

UPDATE 12/12: Today, New England signed wide receiver Tony Logan to the practice squad.

Tweet


Follow @RichSlate

There Goes Kellen Winslow Jr.'s Shot At The Patriots Hall Of Fame

Blink and you missed the entire extent of Kellen Winslow's time with the Patriots in 2012. Today, the high-strung tight end asked for and promptly received his release from the team a mere nine days after signing with New England in the first place. So in other words, his tenure here was about as long as your typical relationship in middle school.

We'll never really know what Winslow has left since he got on the field for a total of four plays on Sunday against the Ravens (which earned him $48,529, really). He had a 12-yard catch and dropped another pass that was right in his hands (not all that difficult) on the sideline. The good news for Patriots fans is that Winslow probably saw the writing on the wall at his position. Aaron Hernandez reportedly was seen in the locker room today without crutches or a protective boot which makes you think he'll be back in a few weeks and maybe he won't be out as long as we all thought after getting injured against the Cardinals.

With Rob Gronkowski, Hernandez (whenever he returns), Daniel Fells and Michael Hoomanawanui, New England is more than set for tight ends this season. In a couple weeks, we probably won't even remember that Winslow was ever here to begin with. He'll be one of those million transactions that happen during every NFL season that never end up meaning anything.

Don't forget that the Pats also have Visanthe Shiancoe stashed away on the new IR/designated to return list, which means he should finally see the practice field in a few weeks.

Tweet


Follow @RichSlate

Every NFL Team Can Always Use More Soliders: Patriots Sign Kellen Winslow

All it took was a serious ankle injury to Aaron Hernandez in Sunday's loss to the Cardinals for the Patriots to swoop in and sign free agent tight end Kellen Winslow to a one-year deal this morning.

He worked out in New England a few weeks ago but reports surfaced that his knee was a mess and they didn't end up signing him at the time. That should tell something about his physical condition since the Pats were more content with Daniel Fells and Michael Hoomanawanui at the time along with the fact that the Seahawks cut him in training camp.

Still, if he's healthy, Winslow is an above average tight end in the NFL. He was a Pro Bowler in 2007 with the Browns (82 catches, 1106 yards, 5 touchdowns). The sixth overall pick by Cleveland in the 2004 NFL Draft, Winslow was a star at the University of Miami and the son of legendary NFL Hall of Famer and fellow tight end Kellen Winslow (Chargers).

After spending four seasons in Cleveland (two productive, two injury-plagued), Winslow played the last three years in Tampa Bay. He was durable-appearing in all 16 games each season-and put up numbers so it's curious that the Bucs would let him go without anyone really coming up behind him or them bringing in a better guy (sorry washed up Dallas Clark). In 2011, he had 75 catches for 763 yards and two touchdowns. He's averaged 73 receptions for 792.3 yards the past three seasons.

It is silly to expect him to jump right into a new system with a new quarterback and team without any type of growing pains. Plus, unlike with the Buccaneers or Browns where he was the No. 1 or 1A target most of the time, now he'll be at best Tom Brady's fourth option behind Rob Gronkowski, Brandon Lloyd and Wes Welker (if he gets off the bench).

By signing him now, the ever cost-conscious Patriots don't have to foot the bill for his entire $3.3 million salary. Also, by agreeing on a one-year deal, that means that if things don't gel properly, they can let him go quickly (think Albert Haynesworth or Chad Johnson) without many repercussions. For everyone's sake, let's hope that Winslow has more of an impact than those stiffs. Basically it's a no-lose for the Patriots since Hernandez is not expected back until at least October. We all saw how out of whack the offense was against Arizona after he departed so perhaps Winslow will allow offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Brady to get into a better rhythm starting this Sunday against the Ravens.

In honor of the newest Patriot, you know I had to look up one of my all-time favorite YouTube clips: Kellen Winslow calling himself a solider when he was at the U.


Tweet


Follow @RichSlate

Patriots Keep Collecting Backup Tight Ends Like They're Going Out Of Style; UPDATE: Bye Chad!

With OTAs back in full swing, the New England Patriots continue to shuffle bodies in and out of Foxborough before the real action starts later this summer (training camp, preseason).

Today, they announced the signing of veteran tight end Bo Scaife. In addition, three players were released: second-year defensive end Markell Carter (a 2011 6th round draft pick) and rookie free agents tight end Nick Melillo and offensive lineman Jon Opperud.

You'll remember Scaife from his years at the University of Texas (with Vince Young as his quarterback) then he was reunited with VY in Tennessee. He was a sixth round pick of the Titans in 2005 (179th overall) and played there until 2010. Scaife was with the Cincinnati Bengals last season but didn't see the field in the regular season after hurting his shoulder in the preseason.

For his career, Scaife has 251 catches for 2383 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. His best season was 2008 for Tennessee when he played in all 16 games (only 7 starts) and made 58 catches for 561 yards and two touchdowns. At this point in his career and with this roster, he's only fighting for the third tight end spot with Daniel Fells behind Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez (who as we all know is far from a typical tight end).

Carter was a project that never panned out at all and I had never heard of the two rookies so I can't say they'll be missed. In other Patriots news, it was reported today that Andre Carter has been working out at Gillette during the offseason. Now all the Pats have to do is sign him (assuming he's healthy enough from his quad surgery). With the moves today, there are two roster spots open on the 90-man roster so there's a good chance Andre Carter will be back.

UPDATE 6/7: Yes! After rumblings on Twitter earlier this afternoon comes word that the Pats tried unsuccessfully to trade Chad Johnson and now they're just releasing him. I am pumped since his time here was nothing short of a complete disaster. A guy that can only make 15 catches in that offense doesn't deserve anything more than a line or two after one completely forgettable season. Maybe now he can concentrate even more on his shitty reality shows since I think his NFL career is over (although some stupid team will probably bring him in).

UPDATE 6/18: Scaife and offensive lineman Mike Ingersoll were released today.

Tweet


Follow @RichSlate

The Patriots Can Never Have Enough Third Tight Ends

The New England Patriots continue to make exactly their type of moves in free agency as they agreed to terms with their sixth new player in the past week.

Former Denver Broncos tight end Daniel Fells will come to Foxboro seemingly with a place already locked up as the third tight end on New England's depth chart. The Pats have reportedly given the former UC Davis star a three-year deal worth $2 million per season and up to $7 million if he reaches all his incentives.

This is a no-brainer since the Patriots somehow went long stretches last season with only Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski. Sure, Dan Gronkowski was brought in for a few weeks as a blocking tight end but he had zero impact so he was quickly sent on his way out of town and back to the Gronk bros' estate.

Fells apparently is known more for his hands than his blocking which seems counterproductive to what his role will likely be for Bill Belichick. After getting signed as a rookie free agent by the Atlanta Falcons in 2006, he bounced from there to the Raiders and Tampa Bay's practice squad before finding a home in St. Louis (2008-2010).

He spent last season in Denver with Tebowmania where he was limited to 19 catches for 256 yards and three touchdowns. I don't put much stock on those numbers since we all know that Tebow can't throw a forward pass consistently-a key to football in 2012. In 58 career games, Fells has 88 catches for 1001 yards (11.4 yards per catch) and eight touchdowns.

His best season was 2010 with the Rams and Sam Bradford when he made 41 catches for 391 yards (9.5 yards per catch) and two touchdowns in 16 games.

Fells fits the mold of the other players that New England has signed so far: Jonathan Fanene, Steve Gregory, Trevor Scott, Anthony Gonzalez and Brandon Lloyd. None of them have received more than a three-year contract and they are all depth players that are low-risk, high-reward. Stop me if you've heard that one before. If nothing else, he provides insurance in case Gronkowski or Hernandez go down with an injury next season; both were pretty durable last season despite the fact that they take a ton of hits since they are beasts after the catch.

UPDATE 3/19: The Patriots had a very busy day as they added three other players: defensive back Marquice Cole (a special teams standout from the Jets), offensive lineman Robert Gallery (a former No. 2 overall pick in 2004 for Oakland who's been a complete bust) and wide receiver Donte' Stallworth (who was a Patriot in 2007 but he's only had 41 catches and three touchdowns combined in the last three seasons). Gallery and Stallworth got one-year deals.

UPDATE 3/20: Mike Reiss tweeted that Cole's deal is one-year and worth $615,000. He also said that Cole can become a "core special teamer."

UPDATE 3/21: Lost in all the other moves, the Patriots re-signed center Dan Connolly to a three-year deal while they also released linebacker Christian Cox who spent all last season (his rookie year) on IR.

Also today, New England signed veteran cornerback Will Allen to a one-year deal. Stallworth will get $875,000 including a $25,000 bonus and $25,000 workout bonus. Mark Anderson signed a four-year deal with the Buffalo Bills and some guy named Tim Tebow was traded from the Broncos to the Jets. The AFC East is getting very interesting, although the Miami Dolphins still have done basically nothing besides sign David Gerrard after getting turned down by every other free agent QB.

Tweet


Follow @RichSlate