Former Cincinnati Bengals outside linebacker Marquis Flowers (53) restrains Cincinnati Bengals safety Clayton Fejedelem (42) who receives an penalty in the second quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh on September 18, 2016. File photo by Archie Carpenter/UPI |
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FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Linebacker Marquis Flowers suited up for his first New England Patriots practice Sept. 2, less than a week after the fourth-year special teamer was acquired in a trade from the Bengals. The young veteran has already noticed a pretty big change between his former employer and the work environment in which he now resides.
"It's a little different feeling, obviously, but I can tell right away that this is a team where veterans really help out ... It's definitely a different culture (from Cincinnati) because these are the defending Super Bowl champions, they carry themselves a certain way, everybody does their job, and the mottos," Flowers described.
"In Cincinnati," he continued, "obviously, it's still the NFL, you still have to be a professional, we still had rules to follow, but it's just certain things here that are stricter than Cincinnati. You learn that. I'm a team guy, so, whatever they say to do, I'm going to do.
"One of my teammates back in Cincinnati, (former Patriots receiver) Brandon LaFell, he always used to talk about that, so, I kind of knew to work hard, play hard, and the goal is to win every week."
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Quarterback Jacoby Brissett, a 2016 third-round pick who actually went 1-1 as a surprise rookie starter during Tom Brady's Deflategate suspension last September, was traded to the Colts Sept. 2 in exchange for wide receiver Phillip Dorsett, himself a first-round pick in Indianapolis in 2015.
Brissett was coming off an impressive performance in the preseason finale against the Giants in which he played wire-to-wire, throwing for more than 300 yards with four touchdowns and one interception while running for another score. But working behind both Brady and veteran backup Jimmy Garoppolo over the last year, Brissett has seen limited practice reps and limited development. Despite his work against New York - and probably understandable given limited work - Brissett has questions about his accuracy, reads and consistency running the passing game that's so key in New England.
In Dorsett, the Patriots added another speedy receiver to join offseason trade addition Brandin Cooks. The former Miami star caught 51 passes over his two seasons with the Colts, starting seven of the 26 games he played. Dorsett caught 33 passes last fall with a pair of touchdowns while averaging 16 yards per catch.
Not only does Dorsett add depth to a receiving corps that lost Julian Edelman to a torn ACL this August, but he also could be an option in the return game for New England after the team lost Cyrus Jones, its projected top returner, also to a torn ACL. Dorsett, though, has only returned two punts and one kick in the NFL, all coming as a rookie in 2015. He did return 25 punts and 25 kickoffs in his college career for the Hurricanes, though he never scored a touchdown in the role.
Roster notes:
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Defensive end Cassius Marsh was acquired in a trade from the Seahawks Sept. 2 in exchange for a fifth- and seventh-round picks in the 2018 draft. Marsh is a 6-foot-4, 245-pounder who was a fourth-round pick out of UCLA. Marsh played in 37 games in his three seasons with Seattle, including one start, notching 40 tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble and a fumble recovery. He adds depth to a very thin edge of the New England defense.
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Cornerback Johnson Bademosi was acquired in a trade from the Lions Sept. 2 in exchange for a 2019 sixth-round pick. The former 2012 undrafted rookie has played in 78 career NFL games, mostly on special teams though he does have three starts under his belt, notching 31 tackles on defense along with an interception, eight passes defensed and one fumble recovery. He led the Browns in special teams tackles each year from 2012-15 and has 65 career special teams tackles.
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Defensive end Derek Rivers, New England's top pick, was placed on injured reserve Sept. 2 with a torn ACL.
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Cornerback Cyrus Jones, New England's top pick in 2016, was placed on injured reserve Sept. 2 with a torn ACL.
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Tackle Tony Garcia, the third-round rookie, was placed on reserve/non-football illness Sept. 2 after missing most of training camp for unknown reasons.
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Running back Brandon Bolden, a core special teamer and veteran of five previous seasons in New England, was one of the more notable cuts made by the Patriots to get down to the 53-man limit.
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Offensive lineman Conor McDermott, a sixth-round pick out of UCLA, was one of 17 rookies released by the Patriots in the cutdown to 53. He was claimed on waivers Sunday by Buffalo.
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Defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr., a fourth-round pick, was the only one of New England's four 2017 draft picks to make the active roster out of camp.
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Guard/tackle Cole Croston was a surprise to make the opening roster as an undrafted rookie out of Iowa. Croston's ability to play inside and out probably led to the somewhat surprising cut of second-year C/G Alex Karras, who started last season's opener at guard and played all 16 games as rookie.
