Defensive tackle Mike Wright was the most important player the Patriots re-signed out of this bunch.  He played in all 16 games and he made 32 tackles, had a sack, forced a fumble and recovered 2 fumbles.  He could work his way into an eventual starters job for the Patriots.  Linebacker Corey Mays (8 games, 9 tackles) and CB Rashard Baker (6 games, 2 tackles) are both signings that are just depth moves.

The Patriots have re-signed WR Brandon Childress and guard Gene Mruczkowski.  Childress played in 2 games last season and he caught 2 passes for 7 yards.  Mruczkowski only played in 1 game in 2006 and 18 games in his 4 year career.  Both were just re-signed for depth reasons.

The Patriots have signed WR Kelley Washington to a 5 year, $22 million dollar contract.  Seems like a lot of money for a receiver that only played in 5 games (1 start) and caught 9 passes for 115 yards (12.8 avg) with 1 TD catch.  Over his 4 year career, Washington has played in 44 games (6 starts) and he has caught 72 passes for 893 yards (12.4 avg) with 9 TD receptions.  Washington does have great athletic ability but he has never really gotten the chance to show it as the Bengals were loaded at WR.

The Patriots continue to reload on offense as they signed the super speedy Donte’ Stallworth.  He played in 12 games (11 starts) for the Philadelphia Eagles last season and he caught 38 passes for 725 yards (19.1 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  In his 5 year career, Stallworth has only played in all 16 games twice.  In those two seasons, Stallworth averaged 64 receptions, 856 yards and 6 TD receptions.  He could provide even better numbers this season if he can just stay healthy, because he’s got Tom Brady throwing to him now.

The Patriots have re-signed reserve linebacker Larry Izzo.  He played in 16 games for the Patriots last season and made 14 tackles.  He’s a great special teams player and that’s where he’ll be the most valuable to the Patriots this season.

The Patriots have traded a 2007 2nd and 7th round draft pick to the Miami Dolphins for Wes Welker.  Welker does everything on the football field.  He’s a good receiver, he returns both kickoffs and punts and he’s even kicked a field goal for the Dolphins when their starting kicker was injured.  Welker played in all 16 games last season and he caught 67 passes for 687 yards with 1 TD grab.  He also returned 48 kickoffs for 1,064 yards (22.2 avg) and 41 punts for 378 yards (9.2 avg).  Look for Welker to continue playing all three of those roles for the Patriots next season.  Upon arrival in New England, Welker signed a 5 year, $18.1 million dollar contract.  This move probably makes Tom Brady very happy.

The Patriots moved quickly to replace Corey Dillon and signed Sammy Morris.  Morris is a hard runner that will give Laurence Maroney a break when he needs one.  He played in 12 games last season for the Dolphins (4 starts) and he carried the ball 92 times for 400 yards (4.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 21 passes for 162 yards (7.7 avg).  Morris was a great addition to the Patriots who should fit right in.

Bill Beilchick finally got his man.  When he was in Cleveland he had targeted Kyle Brady with his first round pick, but it wasn’t to be as the Jets took him right before the Browns were to pick.  Well, it cost Belichick and the Patriots $5.3 million dollars over two seasons.  Brady is primarily a run blocker as he played in all 16 games last season for the Jaguars (14 starts) and he only caught 5 passes for 37 yards (7.4 avg).  Look for him to catch the ball more often for the Patriots as Tom Brady likes to get everyone involved in the offense.

The Patriots have re-signed fullback Heath Evans.  Evans played in 16 games (3 starts) last season and he carried the football 27 times for 117 yards (4.3 ypc).  He also caught 7 passes for 34 yards (4.9 avg) with 1 TD reception.  Evans is a good football player and will help the offense for the Patriots next season.

Corey Dillon has asked for his release from the Patriots and on Friday he got his wish.  Dillon still thinks he can be the main man in a running attack and he didn’t want to share the football with Laurence Maroney.  Dillon played in 16 games (13 starts) for the Patriots last season and he carried the football 199 times for 812 yards (4.1 ypc) with 13 TD runs.  He also caught 15 passes for 147 yards (9.8 avg).  Dillon was a fantastic performer for the Patriots in his three seasons there.  He played in 43 games for the Patriots (37 starts) and he rushed for 3,180 yards (4.2 ypc) with 37 TD runs.  He also caught 52 passes for 431 yards (8.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Look for Laurence Maroney to really explode next season for the Patriots.