The Patriots have sent five offensive players, one special teams player and two defensive players to the Pro Bowl.  34-year old QB Tom Brady will be the starting QB for the AFC.  He has played in 15 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has completed 378 of 576 passes (65.6%) for 4,897 yards with 36 TD passes and 11 INTs (105.1 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 43 times for 109 yards (2.5 ypc) with 3 TD runs so far this year.  30-year old WR Wes Welker is still Tom Brady’s favorite receiver.  Welker has played in 15 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has caught 116 passes for 1,518 yards (13.1 avg) with 9 TD grabs so far this year.  He has also returned 8 punts for 82 yards (10.3 avg) and he has carried the ball 4 times for 30 yards (7.5 ypc) this year.  22-year old TE Rob Gronkowski has been the best TE on the planet this year.  He has played in 15 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has caught 82 passes for 1,219 yards (14.9 avg) with 15 TD grabs.  Gronkowski has also returned 1 kickoff for 11 yards and he has carried the ball 1 time for 2 yards, and it went for a TD.  29-year old guard Logan Mankins and 34-year old Brian Waters will be the starting guards for the AFC in the Pro Bowl.  They have both started all 15 games for the Patriots so far this year.

32-year old DE Andre Carter was elected to start in the Pro Bowl, but he’s going to miss the game due to injury.  He played in 14 games for the Patriots this year and he had 52 tackles, 10 sacks, 5 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumble and 1 pass defensed.  30-year old DT Vince Wilfork will also be going to the Pro Bowl as a starter.  He has played in 15 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has 49 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 5 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries, 3 passes defensed and 2 interceptions.

26-year old WR/S Matthew Slater has made it to the Pro Bowl as a special teams player.  Slater has played in 15 games for the Patriots this year and he has caught 1 pass for 46 yards and returned 3 kickoffs for 54 yards (18.0 avg).  He has also played a lot at safety lately as he has 24 tackles and 1 forced fumble so far this year.

The Patriots have lost 32-year old starting DE Andre Carter for the rest of the 2011 season due to a quad injury.  Carter played in 14 games for the Patriots this year and he had 52 tackles, 10 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 pass defensed and 5 tackles for a loss.  He has now played in 163 games in his first 11 years in the NFL and he has 494 tackles, 76 sacks, 17 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries, 23 passes defensed and 47 tackles for a loss.  This is a HUGE loss for the Patriots going forward as Carter was their best pass rusher.

The Patriots have signed 30-year old DE/OLB Eric Moore.  Moore played in 4 games for the Patriots last year and he had 14 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  Moore has now played in 33 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has 45 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 4 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  This was a good move for the Patriots as Moore already knows the defense.

UPDATE:  (12/20/2011) – The Patriots have waived Eric Moore.  He played in 2 games for the Patriots this year but he didn’t have any tackles.  This isn’t much of a loss for the Patriots.

The New England Patriots have placed 23-year old OLB Jermaine Cunningham on the Injured Reserve List due to a hamstring injury.  Cunningham played in 9 games for the Patriots this year and he had 1 whole tackle.  Cunningham has now played in 24 games in his first 2 years with the Patriots and he has 35 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles and 1 pass defensed.  The Patriots hope that Cunningham will get back on the right track for them in 2012.

The Patriots have signed 29-year old CB Nate Jones.  Jones played in 2 games for the Dolphins earlier this year and he had 1 tackle.  He has now played in 101 games in his first 8 years in the NFL and he has 213 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 6 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 16 passes defensed and 3 interceptions.  This is going to wind up being a good move for the Patriots who need all the help they can get in the secondary as they are giving up 307.5 yards passing per game this year.

The Patriots have waived 23-year old cornerback Phillip Adams.  Adams played in 6 games for the Patriots last year and he had 8 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception.  He has now played in 21 games in his first two years in the NFL and he has 21 tackles, 1 interception and 2 passes defensed.  This is not a big loss for the Patriots.

The Patriots have waived 30-year old DT Albert Haynesworth.  Haynesworth played in six games for the Patriots this year and he had 3 tackles.  He has now played in 116 games in his first 10 years in the NFL and he has 327 tackles, 30.5 sacks, 49 tackles for a loss, 6 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries and 24 passes defensed.  Haynesworth was not giving a good effort for the Patriots this year and that is what led to his release.

The Patriots have waived 30-year old cornerback Leigh Bodden.  Bodden played in 5 games for the Patriots last year and he had 17 tackles and 4 passes defensed.  Bodden played in 20 games in his two years with the Patriots and he had 72 tackles, 5 interceptions (1 returned for a TD), defensed 22 passes, forced a fumble, recovered a fumble and he had 1 tackle for a loss.  This was a surprising move, especially when you consider that they are playing the Steelers this weekend.

The Patriots have placed 29-year old DT Mike Wright on the Injured Reserve List, ending his season due to a concussion.  Wright played in 1 game for the Patriots this year and he had 1 tackle and 1/2 a sack.  He has now played in 81 games in his first seven years with the Patriots and he has 134 tackles, 15 sacks, 5 tackles for a loss, 4 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries and 3 passes defensed.  This is going to hurt the depth on the D-Line for the Patriots.

The Patriots will be without 25-year old LB Jerod Mayo for the next 4-6 weeks due to a left MCL sprain.  Mayo has played in 4 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has 24 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss and 1 forced fumble.  25-year old Gary Guyton will replace Mayo in the starting lineup.  Guyton has played in 3 games for the Patriots so far this year and he has 10 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.  Mayo is one of he best players on the Patriots’ defense, so expect a dropoff without him…..if that’s even possible due to the way they are playing right now.