The Patriots' secondary depth was dealt another blow this afternoon—this time voluntary—as second-year cornerback Sterling Moore was waived, according to a league source.


Moore, 22, certainly had his part in contributing to the struggling secondary so far this season. While made (in)famous for a play that may forever live in Patriots' lore after dislodging a surefire Lee Evans touchdown during the AFC Championship Game against the Ravens last season, it's apparent the coaching staff hasn't seen the improvements in his game they'd hope they'd see at this point. While the news is unfortunate as the seemingly endless search continues for a few good men defensive backs, the silver lining is that this can certainly be seen as a vote of confidence in rookie CB Alfonzo Dennard. Dennard has seen his snaps steadily increase after replacing Moore at nickelback during the Broncos game and replacing starting CB Kyle Arrington during the Seahawks game.


In a corresponding move to round out the roster spots vacated by Sterling Moore and LB Bobby Carpenter (who found himself released on Tuesday), the Patriots re-signed S Derrick Martin and LB Mike Rivera to the 53-man roster.