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The Patriots have signed 23-year old undrafted rookie long snapper Danny Aiken. Aiken played in all four preseason games for the Bills, but they were already set at his position. He will step right into the starting lineup for the Patriots, so he’s going to be under pressure from Day #1.
The Patriots have signed 34-year old OG Brian Waters. Waters played in 16 games (all starts) for the Chiefs last year. He has now played in 163 games (149 starts) in his first 11 years in the NFL. Waters is known as a nasty run blocker and the Patriots were giddy to find him still available on the free agent market. This was an outstanding signing for the Patriots.
The Patriots have signed 35-year old long snapper/tight end James Dearth. Dearth didn’t play for the Chargers last year because of a fractured foot. Dearth has now played in 146 games (1 start) in his first 12 years in the NFL and he has caught 3 passes for 10 yards (3.3 avg) with 1 TD grab. The Patriots won’t be sending Dearth out on any pass patterns as they have brought him in to snap the ball on kicks and punts.
UPDATE: (9/4/2011) – The Patriots have released James Dearth.
The Patriots have signed 27-year old linebacker Ricky Brown. Brown played in 14 games for the Raiders last year in which he had 13 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 forced fumble. Brown has now played in 55 games in his first 5 years in the NFL and he has 102 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 4 passes defensed and 3 forced fumbles. Brown will give the Patriots more depth at linebacker and on special teams.
UPDATE: (9/3/2011) – The Patriots have released Ricky Brown.
The Patriots have signed 27-year old linebacker James Ihedigbo. He played in 14 games for the Jets last year and he had 22 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 3 sacks and 1 fumble recovery. Ihedigbo has now played in 37 games in his first three years in the NFL and he has 49 tackles, 5 sacks, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 1 forced fumble. Ihedigbo is a special teams player but little more although he does have a knack for getting to the QB. This was another solid signing for the Patriots.
The Patriots have signed 30-year old linebacker Niko Koutouvides. Koutouvides played in 14 games for the Buccaneers last year and he had 12 tackles. He has now played in 103 games in his first seven years in the NFL and he has 146 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 1 pass defensed and 2 tackles for a loss. Koutouvides will add depth to the linebacking unit while being a big help on special teams for the Patriots in 2011.
UPDATE: (9/4/2011) – The Patriots have released Niko Koutouvides.
The Patriots have signed 32-year old DE Andre Carter. Carter played in all 16 games for the Redskins last season and he had 44 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed. He has now played in 149 games in his first 10 years in the NFL and he has 442 tackles, 42 tackles for a loss, 66 sacks, 15 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries and 22 passes defensed. This was a good move for the Patriots as Carter should help their pass rush as long as he has something left in the gas tank.
The Patriots have signed 34-year old DE Shaun Ellis to a 1-year deal. Ellis played in 15 games for the Jets last year and he had 36 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 3 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble and 1 pass defensed. He has now played in 170 games in his first 11 years in the NFL (all with the Jets) and he has 552 tackles, 72.5 sacks, 21 tackles for a loss, 13 forced fumbles, 5 fumble recoveries, 16 passes defensed and 1 interception. Ellis should really be able to help the Patriots in pass rushing situations. He should also be able to provide quite a bit of intel on his old team (the Jets) which has Jets’ head coach Rex Ryan flustered already. This was a very good move by the Patriots.
The Patriots have signed 28-year old DE Mark Anderson. Anderson played in 15 games for the Texans last year and he had 29 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 4 sacks and 2 passes defensed. He has now played in 77 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has 134 tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, 25.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 7 passes defensed. The Patriots hope that Anderson can help them out a little bit as a pass rusher in 2011. The Patriots have also cut 25-year old DT Marlon Favorite who didn’t get into any games as a rookie last year.
The New England Patriots have signed 28-year old Chris Morris and 25-year old Jonathan Compas to provide depth at center. Morris played in 4 games (0 starts) for the Panthers last year. He has now played in 51 games (11 starts) in his first five years in the NFL. Compas didn’t play in any games last year in the NFL. He has played in 2 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the NFL. Morris could help the Patriots in 2011 if the need arises at center while Compas is probably a long shot to win a roster spot this year.
UPDATE: (8/16/2011) – The Patriots have released Chris Morris.