3 Patriots who won’t make the roster after 1st preseason game

It's safe to say that the first preseason game did not go as expected for New England Patriots fans. Their defense shining isn't too much of a surprise, but offensively, Joe Milton III stole the spotlight. Milton, a quarterback that New England selected in the sixth round (wink wink) of this past draft, threw for 54 yards in the air with a touchdown and rushed for 22 more yards in New England's 17-3 win.

Patriots fans attended Thursday's game expecting it to be the Drake Maye show, but Milton was the one who excelled and might've won himself a roster spot in the process.

Things can change on a weekly basis in the NFL preseason, but after the first game, there are three fairly simple Patriots roster cuts to identify.

3) JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR

The Patriots once again will trot out an underwhelming wide receiving core, but it's an improved one from recent years, mainly due to Ja'Lynn Polk, their second-round pick from this past NFL Draft, joining the fold.

While the receiving room is devoid of star power, there are several playable options. Kendrick Bourne figures to see the most targets, while players like Polk, DeMario Douglas, K.J. Osborn, and Jevon Baker will play some sort of role as well. With that in mind, the Patriots suddenly have five receivers who should be seen as virtual locks.

JuJu Smith-Schuster, arguably the most accomplished receiver in this receiving room, will have to compete with players like Tyquan Thornton, Kayshon Boutte, and Jalen Reagor for what could be the final receiver spot on the team.

Cutting Smith-Schuster would mean that the team would take on a dead cap hit of $12 million according to Spotrac which might cause them to balk, but is he legitimately one of the six best receivers on the roster? Smith-Schuster had a chance to play a major role after inking a lucrative three-year deal ahead of last season but he appeared in just 11 games and had only 260 yards, averaging a mere 23.6 yards per game.

Boutte being the best receiver on the field for New England on Thursday didn't help his cause either, as he led the team in targets (six) and yards (53) while tying the team lead for receptions (three). Smith-Schuster has a chance, but he's going to have to step his game up in the next couple of weeks to earn a spot.

2) Joey Slye, K

The Patriots entered camp with two kickers on their roster. The reality of the situation there is that only one of Chad Ryland or Joey Slye will make the team's 53-man roster.

This is an interesting competition to watch, as the Patriots will either go with the younger kicker who they recently drafted with more potential in Ryland, or Slye, a far more accurate option in 2023.

Ryland was taken in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Patriots, which is certainly not low for a kicker. He has a ton of talent, but made just 16 of his 25 field goal attempts (64 percent). Slye, on the other hand, made 19 of his 24 attempts (79.2 percent) for the Washington Commanders last season and he even made a 61-yarder.

This could come down to whoever performs better in preseason, but since Ryland was recently drafted and does have potential, the job is probably his to lose, making Slye the odd man out.

1) Bailey Zappe, QB

Here's the controversial one. If this was written before training camp, it would've been safe to predict that Milton would be among the potential cuts. After a strong camp and first preseason game, would the Patriots really cut him?

If Milton is safe, Bailey Zappe is in trouble. The Patriots just took Drake Maye with the No. 3 overall pick, he's not going anywhere. They just signed Jacoby Brissett to a pretty expensive one-year deal. Even if he doesn't start over Maye, he can provide Maye with some valuable veteran leadership. He's almost certainly not going anywhere.

Since the Patriots won't be carrying four quarterbacks on their Week 1 roster, Zappe feels like the odd man out. Zappe was once a fan favorite among Patriots fans when he'd replace the struggling Mac Jones, but now that Maye (and Milton) are in town, he doesn't even have that to his advantage anymore. In fact, the crowd was so disappointed to see Zappe enter the game in Maye's place on Thursday to the point where they booed him.

The 25-year-old had a fairly impressive showing in 2022, but struggled last season in a more expanded role, completing just 59.9 percent of his passes and six touchdowns compared to nine interceptions in 10 games (six starts). At this point, it'd be fairly surprising to see him on New England's Week 1 roster.