New England Patriots links 9/03/18 - Labor Day edition: Making sense of the roster

TEAM TALK

• The Patriots made several roster moves today to get under the NFL-mandatory 53-man roster limit. Here is a look at the roster by position.
• Patriots sign eight to the practice squad; Place TE Ryan Izzo on Injured Reserve.
• Patriots claim two players off waivers: WR Amara Darboh from Seattle and WR Chad Hansen from the Jets.
• Paul Perillo doesn’t find too many surprises among Bill Belichick’s initial roster moves.

LOCAL LINKS

• Mike Reiss shares some quick-hit weekend thoughts: Bill Belichick’s position coaches all share a deep love for football that began in childhood; More.
• Ryan Hannable’s Sunday 7: Recent poor draft history could hurt the Patriots in coming years.
• Steve Balestrieri (PatsFans) Sunday Patriots news; AFC East notes: Of course, we are always reminded of the team’s and Bill Belichick misses in the earlier rounds of the draft. In essence, the Patriots are no worse nor better than everyone else with the ratio of hits to misses on the roster.
• Kevin Duffy breaks down the initial roster and notes the Pats enter Week 1 with only three offensive tackles and three wide receivers.
• Evan Lazar offers his instant reaction to the roster. Patriots will go with three “true” WRs.
• Phil Perry picks the most and least surprising parts of the roster.
• Ryan Hannable gives us five thoughts on the roster. The RB position is an interesting one.
• Kevin Duffy observes this weekend’s roster cuts highlighted a bizarre trend in New England: Undrafted CBs have routinely outperformed CBs drafted in the top rounds.
• Karen Guregian says the cuts show the 2016 draft was a disappointment.
• Zack Cox talks about how Devin McCourty is helping his brother Jason with the switch to safety.
• Phil Perry reports Trent Brown was missing at the start of Sunday’s practice.
• Kevin Duffy mentions how Sony Michel is seeing increased work in practice.
• CBS Boston highlights Trey Flowers, ready for Week 1, “It’s time for football to be played.”
• CBS Boston highlights Lawrence Guy on his unlikely road to the NFL, why giving back to the community is a priority for him and what it’s really like to play for Bill Belichick.
• Ryan Hannable notes Marcus Cannon (knee) reportedly has been cleared to play Week 1.
• Evan Lazar’s Film Review: With former Jets receiver Chad Hansen, the Patriots may have found a reliable depth option at wide receiver.
• Zack Cox says the Patriots plan to add another offensive lineman to the roster ahead of the season opener.
• Joy Manning (BostonSportsChick) How my 53-man roster stacked up against Belichick’s.
• Mike Reiss addresses his Patriots Mailbag: Tom Brady’s approach in 2018: Relentless positivity.
• Kevin Duffy Patriots Notebook: Wide receivers Amara Darboh, Chad Hansen on board; More.
• Matt Vautour relays Deion Branch sharing some advice for Brady’s newest receivers.
• Team (TB12) TB12-Exclusive 2018 preseason interview with Tom Brady.
• Karen Guregian NFL Notebook: Tom Brady has suspension lesson for Julian Edelman; More.
• Doug Kyed highlights Brian Flores on what Bret Bielema brings to the coaching staff.
• The Herald gathers some Tom Brady stats, noting Brady has put together some amazing seasons during his 18 years with the Patriots.
• The Herald lists Julian Edelman’s best years, in order of receiving yards.

NATIONAL NEWS

• Darin Gantt (ProFootballTalk) Patriots thin up front with Trent Brown out of practice.
• Charean Williams (ProFootballTalk) Tom Brady: It’s motivating to me to finish the right way.
• NFL Nation (ESPN) What these four NFL stars are saying about their suspensions. Julian Edelman included.
• Cynthia Frelund (NFL.com) Jalen Ramsey’s Rob Gronkowski critique: Does CB have a point? /In-depth, interesting read on what Ramsey missed.
• David Boclair (NashvilleScene) This year’s Tennessee Titans: Getting past the Pats. The Titans borrow from the NFL’s best team in a quest to create their own version of excellence.
• Albert Breer (SI) Monday Morning QB: On Khalil Mack, Aaron Donald and the value of a franchise defensive player.
• Peter King (ProFootballTalk) Football Morning in America: On the Mack mistake and why Super Bowl 53 will be Rams-Patriots.
• Albert Breer (SI) What we learned on a newsier-than-usual NFL roster cut-down day.
• Conor Orr (SI) Could 2018 be the season that makes or breaks the NFL?
• Jimmy Kempski (PhillyVoice) Ranking NFL teams by age after 53-man cutdowns: 2018 edition.
• Tom Mead (InsideThePylon) Evolution breeds opportunity for tight ends in the Red Zone.
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) Bills decide to throw Nathan Peterman to the wolves instead of Josh Allen.
• Erik Brady (USA Today) Here’s how Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth built a successful ‘marriage’ on Sunday Night Football.
• Staff (Bleacher Report) NFL Power Rankings: B/R’s expert consensus rank for every team entering Week 1. Patriots 4th.
• Gary Gramling (SI) The really real prop bets of the 2018 NFL season.