Patriots 53-Man Roster Breakdown

With the regular season fast approaching, the New England Patriots cut 20 players Saturday, to get their roster down to the 53-man limit set by the league.

Here's a look at how the team's initial roster breaks down and how it compares to roster projections:

Quarterback (2)

IN: Jimmy Garoppolo, Jacoby Brissett

SUSPENDED: Tom Brady

Note: No surprise here, as it's been Garoppolo and Brissett all along. New England never brought in another veteran to even battle for the spot. Once his four game suspension is finished, Brady will be back on the field.

Running Back (5)

IN: LeGarrette Blount, James White, Brandon Bolden, D.J. Foster, James Develin

Note: Blount and White were as close to locks as the team had at this position. Bolden was also a pretty solid bet to be on the roster, although he gets very few reps in the backfield. His ability as a core special teams player ultimately won out over other younger special teams options. The big change from the projection is Foster in and Tyler Gaffney out. The thought was that, while Foster adds explosiveness and big play ability, his injury issues early in camp coupled with Gaffney's solid play throughout the summer would cause the undrafted rookie to be left off the roster. Foster's work over the final two preseason games, along with Gaffney getting banged up against the Giants, was enough to give the dynamic play-maker the edge. Also, keep in mind that while at Arizona State Foster spent some time as a wide receiver. With the couple of surprising cuts in the receiving corps, the Pats could be looking at the rookie as a hybrid-type player that could be split out wide regularly. Also, no surprise the veteran Develin makes the roster. His abilities out of the backfield and along the line blocking are important to this team's running game.

Tight End (4)

IN: Rob Gronkowski, Martellus Bennett, A.J. Derby, Clay Harbor

Note: This position brought another surprising twist not accounted for in the projection. With A.J. Derby's impressive string of performances throughout the preseason, there was little belief that he had not done enough to warrant earning one of the presumed three roster spots at the position.

Wide Receiver (5)

IN: Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell, Matthew Slater

Note: The big takeaway here is that Amendola did not end up on the PUP list and will start the season on the active roster. That maybe helps explain why the team cut versatile wide out Keshawn Martin, who also left the final preseason game with an injury. The projection was also right in excluding fourth year receiver Aaron Dobson, who was cut Sunday. After a decent rookie season, Dobson regressed and never made the next step in this Patriots offense. His second round pick status kept him around for a few seasons, but his inability to produce finally cost him his spot.

O-Line (10)

IN: David Andrews, Josh Kline, Joe Thuney, Jonathan Cooper, Shaq Mason, Ted Karras, Nate Solder, Marcus Cannon, Cameron Fleming, LaAdrian Waddle

Note: Everyone from the projection is there, plus Karras. The rookie was a bubble player heading into the final set of cuts, but his versatility along the interior offensive line where he can play both guard and center helped him carve out a spot.

D-Line (7)

IN: Jabaal Sheard, Chris Long, Trey Flowers, Malcom Brown, Alan Branch, Vincent Valentine, Anthony Johnson

SUSPENDED: Rob Ninkovich

Note: The suspension of Ninkovich throws a bit of a wrench into the team's plans along the line, but having the veteran presence of Chris Long to step into a starting role is a big plus. Also, the team will get a boost along the edge from outside linebackers Shea McClellin and Barkevious Mingo, who posses the ability to play as edge rushers. The lone surprise along the interior is the addition of Anthony Johnson and, if you watched the final three preseason games, you know that's not much of a surprise.

Linebacker (6)

IN: Jamie Collins, Dont'a Hightower, Jonathan Freeny, Shea McClellin, Barkevious Mingo, Elandon Roberts

Notes: The first five were all projected to make the roster, with both McClellin and Mingo being guys that will also have an impact along the line as edge rushers all season long. The surprise here is Roberts in for fellow rookie Kamu Grugier-Hill. Grugier-Hill was considered a solid bet to snag one of the final spots because of his abilities on special teams, but Roberts' early down abilities and hard-nosed energy through the preseason ultimately gave him the nod.

Cornerback (5)

IN: Malcolm Butler, Logan Ryan, Cyrus Jones, Justin Coleman, Jonathan Jones

Note: The first four defensive backs were in on the projection, while the undrafted rookie, Jones, rode a solid special teams showing throughout camp to sneak in as one of the final players to crack the roster. There was a thought that if the team went with five corners the spot would go to another undrafted rookie, Cre'von LeBlanc, who was the best coverage corner of the final three backs on the roster all camp long. Second year defensive back Darryl Roberts was also in the mix for the final spot, though he was also cut Sunday. Of those three, Jones was far and away the strongest special teams player, which is how he figures to make the most of his opportunity on the roster.

Safety (6) 

IN: Devin McCourty, Patrick Chung, Duron Harmon, Nate Ebner, Jordan Richards, Brandon King

Note: No surprises here as one of the deepest units on the team is left in tact.

Specialists (3)

IN: Stephen Gostkowski, Ryan Allen, Joe Cardona

Note: There was no battle for any of these three spots here. This decision was made day one.