The New England Patriots have signed 30-year old WR Brandon Lloyd to a 3-year, $12 million dollar deal.  Lloyd played in 15 games for the Broncos & Rams last year and he caught 70 passes for 966 yards (13.8 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  He has now played in 112 games in his first 9 years in the NFL and he has caught 311 passes for 4,784 yards (15.4 avg) with 31 TD grabs.  This signing came as no surprise, as Lloyd is a favorite of Patriots’ offensive co-ordinator Josh McDaniels, who coached him in Denver and St. Louis.  Lloyd gives the Patriots a WR that can make big plays down the field.  This was a excellent move for the Patriots.

The Patriots have re-signed 29-year old center Dan Connolly.  Connolly played in 13 games (11 starts) for the Patriots last year.  He has now played in 42 games (28 starts) in his first four years in the NFL.  Connolly appears to be a late bloomer and the Patriots were smart to bring him back to help protect Tom Brady in 2012.

The Patriots have signed 29-year old safety Steve Gregory to a 3-year deal.  Gregory played in 15 games for the Chargers last year and he had 67 tackles, 3 passes defensed and 1 interception (he returned it for a TD).  Gregory has now played in 85 games in his first six years in the NFL and he has 241 tackles, 17 passes defensed, 4 interceptions (one returned for a TD), 2 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries and 2 tackles for a loss.  This was a good pickup for the Patriots, as safety was a weakness for them last year.

The Patriots have re-signed 30-year old LB Tracy White.  White played in 15 games for the Patriots last year and he had 37 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  White has now played in 31 games in his first two years with the Patriots and he has 54 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  White isn’t a big time playmaker but he’s a solid backup.

The Patriots have signed 29-year old DE Jonathan Fanene to a 3-year deal.  He played in all 16 games for the Bengals last year and he had 24 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 2 fumble recoveries and 1 pass defensed.  Fanene has now played in 71 games in his first 7 years in the NFL and he has 103 tackles, 13.5 sacks, 9 tackles for a loss, 3 fumble recoveries, 4 passes defensed and a interception that he returned for a TD.  This was a solid pick-up for the Patriots as they have had good success with players like Fanene.

The Patriots have re-signed 26-year old WR Matthew Slater.  Slater played in all 16 games for the Patriots last year and he caught 1 pass for 46 yards.  He also returned 4 kickoffs for 68 yards (17.0 avg) and he had 24 tackles and 1 forced fumble.  Slater has now played in 59 games in his first four years with the Patriots and he has caught 1 pass for 46 yards.  He alsohas returned 26 kickoffs for 492 yards (18.9 avg) and he has 58 tackles and 1 forced fumble.  Slater is the Patriots’ special teams captain and he can also play safety in a pinch.

The Patriots have re-signed 30-year old LB Niko Koutouvides to a 1-year deal.  He played in 8 games for the Patriots last year and he had 14 tackles and 1 fumble recovery.  Koutouvides has now played in 111 games in his first 8 years in the NFL and he has 160 tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  This was a good move for the Patriots as Koutouvides is a really solid special teams player.

The Patriots have re-signed 25-year old DT Kyle Love.  Love played in all 16 games for the Patriots last year and he had 33 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 fumble recovery and 2 tackles for a loss.  He has now played in 25 games in his first two years with the Patriots and he has 40 tackles, 4 sacks, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass defensed.  This was a smart move for the Patriots as Love has shown a lot of potential on the interior of the D-Line.

The Patriots have used their franchise tag on 30-year old WR Wes Welker.  Welker played in all 16 games for the Patriots last year and he caught 122 passes for 1,569 yards (12.9 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 30 yards (7.5 ypc) and he returned 8 punts for 82 yards (10.3 avg) last year.  Welker has now played in 77 games in his first five years with the Patriots and he has caught an amazing 554 passes for 6,105 yards (11.0 avg) with 31 TD grabs.  Welker has also carried the ball 16 times for 126 yards (7.9 ypc) so far in his career with the Patriots.  Welker has returned 89 punts for 942 yards (10.6 avg) and 10 kickoffs for 247 yards (24.7 avg) in his career with the Patriots.  It was smart of the Patriots to bring back Welker for the 2012 season as he is still money over the middle.

The Patriots have waived 26-year old G/C Rich Ohrnberger.  He spent all of last season on the Injured Reserve List.  He played in just 5 games (0 starts) in his three years with the Patriots.  The Patriots have decided not to waste a roster spot anymore on a rather untalented player in Ohrnberger, who also can’t seem to stay healthy.