The Patriots have released 26-year old TE Dan Gronkowski.  Gronkowski played in 2 games for the Patriots this year but he didn’t catch any passes.  He has now played in 16 games in his first 3 years in the NFL and he has caught 9 passes for 69 yards (7.7 avg).  The Patriots hope that Gronkowski’s brother Rob isn’t too upset with this move, as they need his head to stay in the right place.

UPDATE:  (10/10/1011) – The Patriots have re-signed Dan Gronkowski.

UPDATE II:  (11/9/2011) – The Patriots have waived Dan Gronkowski again.  He played in five games for the Patriots this year but he didn’t get a chance to touch the ball.

Starting strong safety Pat Chung is likely out for this Sunday’s game against the Bills due to thumb surgery.  Chung has played in both of the Patriots’ games so far this year and he has 14 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 sack.  This means that Sergio Brown and Josh Barrett will likely be the starting safeties this weekend.  Brown and Barrett have both played in both of the games for the Patriots so far this year.  Brown has 13 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception and Barrett has 8 tackles.  James Ihedibgo will be the only backup on the roster unless the Patriots sign someone in the next couple of days.  He has played in 2 games for the Patriots this year and he has 2 tackles.  This is a big blow to the back end of the Patriots’ D.

The Patriots have signed 25-year old DT Landon Cohen.  Cohen played in 4 games for the Jags & Pats last year and he had 5 tackles.  He has now played in 24 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 30 tackles and 5 tackles for a loss.  The Patriots were lucky to find Cohen still available as he knows the system and should be able to play right away if needed.

UPDATE:  (9/27/2011) – The Patriots have waived Landon Cohen.  Cohen played against the Bills last Sunday and he had 1 tackle.  He has now played in 3 games in parts of two years with the Patriots and he has 4 tackles.

The Patriots have signed 23-year old cornerback Phillip Adams.  Adams played in 15 games as a rookie for the 49ers last year and he had 13 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  The Patriots need help at cornerback and Adams should be able to give them more depth at the position, while also helping out on special teams.

The Patriots have placed 25-year old DT Myron Pryor on the Injured Reserve List due to a severe shoulder injury.  Pryor played in both of the games for the Patriots this year and he had 3 tackles.  He has now played in 24 games in his first three years with the Patriots and he has 35 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 sack and 3 tackles for a loss.  This is going to hurt the Patriots’ depth along the D-Line.

TE Aaron Hernandez has an MCL sprain which will cause him to miss only 1-2 weeks according to the Patriots.  It’s much more likely with that kind of injury, that Hernandez could miss 4-6 weeks.  Hernandez has been excellent for the Patriots so far this year as he has caught 14 passes for 165 yards (11.8 avg) with 2 TD grabs in the team’s first two games.  TE Rob Gronkowski will get more looks now.  He has already caught 10 passes for 172 yards (17.2 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  This could also open the door for WR Chad Ocho Cinco to get more P.T. going forward.  Chad Ocho Cinco has only caught 3 passes for 59 yards (19.7 avg) in his first two games for the Patriots.

The New England Patriots have signed 25-year old offensive guard Donald Thomas.  Thomas didn’t play at all last year for the Lions.  In his first three years in the NFL, Thomas has played in 17 games (13 starts).  This was a nice pickup for the Patriots as they needed more depth on the O-Line due to Dan Koppen’s injury.

32-year old starting center Dan Koppen broke one of his ankles last night.  The Patriots hope that he will be able to return at some point in 2011.  Koppen has played in 121 games (120 starts) in his first 9 years with the Patriots.  For now, the Patriots are going to start Dan Connolly at center.  He has played in 32 games (17 starts) in his first four years with the Patriots.  The Patriots will likely be looking for centers on the free agent market to give them some depth going forward.  This could be a big loss for the Patriots, but I look for them to overcome it.

UPDATE:  (9/13/2011) – The Patriots will be without Dan Koppen for the next 8-10 weeks.

UPDATE:  (9/21/2011) – The Patriots have placed Dan Koppen on the Injured Reserve List ending his season as he also had a fractured fibula along with his fractured ankle.

The New England Patriots have claimed 23-year old LB A.J. Edds off waivers from the Dolphins.  Edds didn’t play at all in his rookie year (2010) due to injury.  Edds played in all 4 preseason games for the Dolphins in which he had 18 tackles and 1 sack.  This move shouldn’t surprise anyone too much as the Patriots open the season against Edds’ old team (the Dolphins).

The Patriots have released 25-year old cornerback Darius Butler.  Butler played in 15 games for the Patriots last year and he had 23 tackles and 6 passes defensed.  He played in 29 games in his two years with the Patriots and he had 58 tackles, 14 passes defensed and 3 interceptions (one returned for a TD).  The Patriots continue to revamp their secondary as they have cut a lot of guys the last week or so.  Only time will tell if those moves were smart or not.