Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer cut, leaving rookie Mac Jones as only active quarterback on Patriots’ 53-man roster
Cutdown day was a busy one for the Patriots on Tuesday. The team had the news of the day when they released Cam Newton, which paves the way for rookie Mac Jones to start at quarterback.
That wasn’t the only surprise as veteran kicker Nick Folk was cut instead of rookie Quinn Nordin. On top of that, Stephon Gilmore starts the season on the physically unable to perform list. That means the cornerback won’t be available until Week 7.
Overall, the Patriots made 28 roster moves to get their roster down to 53.
The team cut 21 players: Newton, Folk, Brian Hoyer, Kristian Wilkerson, Montravious Adams, Adrian Colbert, James Ferentz, Matt LaCosse, Alex Redmond, Akeem Spence, Dee Virgin, Tashawn Bower, Myles Bryant, Korey Cunningham, Michael Jackson Sr., Will Sherman, Bill Murray, Tre Nixon, D’Angelo Ross, Nick Thurman and Isaiah Zuber.
Gilmore, Jarrett Stidham, Terez Hall and Byron Cowart will start the season on the PUP list. Cameron McGrone and Joshuah Bledsoe start the season on the non-football injury list. They also placed linebacker Anfernee Jennings on the injured reserve, which ends his season.
Here’s a look at the Patriots first 53-man roster.
Quarterback (1)
Mac Jones
Cut: Cam Newton, Brian Hoyer / PUP: Jarrett Stidham
The biggest news of the day was that the Patriots cut Newton and and will start Jones. This will be the first rookie quarterback to start Week 1 in New England since Drew Bledsoe in 1998. Don’t expect Hoyer to be gone for long as he’ll likely be back after the team places someone on the injured reserve. The Pats won’t start the season with one quarterback.
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Running back (6)
Damien Harris, James White, J.J. Taylor, Rhamondre Stevenson, Brandon Bolden, Jakob Johnson
Updates on big-name players who were released
Defensive line (6)
Davon Godchaux, Lawrence Guy, Henry Anderson, Deatrich Wise, Christian Barmore, Carl Davis
Cut: Bill Murray, Montravious Adams, Akeem Spence, Tashawn Bower, Nick Thurman / PUP: Byron Cowart
This is another position group that looks improved from a year ago. Barmore looks like he’ll make an impact from Day 1. The Patriots’ run defense should be a lot better.
Linebackers (8)
Matt Judon, Dont’a Hightower, Kyle Van Noy, Josh Uche, Chase Winovich, Ja’Whaun Bentley, Ronnie Perkins, Harvey Langi
PUP: Terez Hall / NFI: Cameron McGrone / IR: Anfernee Jennings
The core of the Patriots defense will be their front seven. With the additions of Judon, Hightower and Van Noy, the Pats are in position to have one of the best pass rushes in the NFL.
Cornerbacks (6)
J.C. Jackson, Jonathan Jones, Jalen Mills, Joejuan Williams, Shaun Wade, Justin Bethel