Anthony Gonzalez's release leaves the New England Patriots with eleven wide receivers.
The New England Patriots are in the midst of OTA’s this week. There has been much activity over the past few weeks.
All of the rookies except for first round pick Dont’a Hightower and third round selection Jake Bequette have agreed to contracts. All of the Patriots draft choices who have signed (Chandler Jones, Tavon Wilson, Nate Ebner, Alfonzo Dennard, and Jeremy Ebert) accepted four-year deals.There is one wrinkle in that Jones is not making as much money as last year’s 21st pick, Cleveland Browns’ Phil Taylor. There is no fourth-year roster bonus of $750,000. Wilson was the first player to reach an agreement. The first two seasons are fully guaranteed. Many people criticized Bill Belichick for taking Wilson in the second round when he could’ve waited in the later rounds. Ebner, the former rugby player could be a special team contributor while being a depth player in the secondary. Dennard has pleaded not guilty in his trial for assaulting a police officer where he could be sentenced to a maximum of five years. The Patriots final selection, wide receiver Ebert, has not joined the team because he has to wait until the rest of his senior class graduates at Northwestern.
In a strange twist, the Patriots released wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez earlier this week. The Patriots had just brought in Gonzalez less than three months ago, but only on a one-year contract. Gonzalez has battled numerous injuries over the past few seasons with the Indianapolis Colts. He has played in just 11 games since the 2008 seasons. The Patriots have a logjam at the receiver position with 11 players and Gonzalez was probably the odd man out.
The Patriots added two other players this week. They signed free agent offensive lineman Jamey Richard, formerly of the Colts and rookie free agent tight end Nick Melillo. The Patriots have five tight ends on their current roster with undrafted rookie Brad Herman. The team has also worked out veterans Dallas Clark and Bo Scaife. This could be for two reasons. One, Rob Gronkowski had surgery on his high ankle sprain in the offseason and the Patriots could be cautious with Gronkowski into the early stages of training camp. Also, Daniel Fells has not taken part in practice. The Patriots are just trying to create depth for a position where they have two rising stars in Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is very creative with his schemes and Patriots fans could see Hernandez set up wide on the offensive line on more occasions. There could be times when the Patriots use Hernandez in the backfield, but it may be more likely he will be utilized mostly as a receiver. Hernandez’s versatility allows the Patriots to bring tight ends like Fells on the roster.