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Top 3 UDFAs that have the best chance of making 53-man roster

For 15 straight seasons, an undrafted rookie free agent has been on the final 53-man roster for the New England Patriots. Which undrafted free agent has the best chance of extending this streak to 16 seasons in 2019?
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FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots have had an undrafted rookie free agent on their active roster for 15 consecutive seasons which is the third longest streak in the NFL only behind the Chargers (22 seasons) and Colts (20 seasons). Every year the Patriots keep at least one UDFA that makes the collective New England fanbase shout: "WHO?!" 

Last year, that player was cornerback JC Jackson. Jackson started five games for the Patriots and played an integral role in shutting down Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce in the AFC Championship game (three catches, 23 yards.) The year before that, defensive tackle Adam Butler made the initial 53-man roster and made an immediate impact. Starting center David Andrews made the team in 2015, and who could forget the undrafted free agent out of West Alabama in 2014, Malcolm Butler.

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A UDFA making New England's final roster almost seems inevitable at this point, but who's it going to be this year? With a team much deeper than last year, each UDFA faces an uphill climb in making the final 53. The Patriots currently have 10 UDFA's on their 90-man roster. Today, we take a look at the three UDFAs that have the greatest chance of sticking around.

1.) Andrew Beck, TE

Photo by Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports

Photo by Scott Sewell-USA TODAY Sports

It's only logical that the player with the greatest chance to make the final roster plays the tight end position. The current tight end depth chart is the worst it's been since before the team drafted Ben Watson in 2004. 

As of today, the Patriots have five tight ends after the team released Austin-Seferian Jenkins earlier this week. The team's current projected tight end depth chart looks like this:

Ben Watson

Matt LaCosse

Stephen Anderson

Ryan Izzo

Andrew Beck

Looks even worse when you see it on paper, huh? To make matters worse, Watson is suspended for the first four games of the 2019 season. This means the team will turn to free agent signee Matt LaCosse to assume the starting role. After LaCosse, there isn't much certainty at the tight end position, although it seems Anderson has impressed early in mini-camp

It's hard to imagine the team entering 2019 with just two tight ends on their active roster especially with projected starter Watson missing the first four games. Expect the team to at least carry three heading into the season. Watson and LaCosse are essentially locks, but nothing is guaranteed after that. Andrew Beck will look to compete with the likes of Anderson and Izzo for that third spot. Beck is a better blocker than he is a receiver which may bode well for him after the team lost one of the best blocking tight ends in league history to retirement. 

2.) Malik Grant, S

Photo by Samuel Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Photo by Samuel Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Malik Grant was expected in many circles to be drafted as early as round four, so you can imagine the Patriots excitement when they grabbed him as an undrafted free agent. 

Grant was a force for Marshall in 2018 as he racked up 95 tackles and two interceptions lining up at the safety position. His best attribute is his support the run game, something that Bill Belichick covets in safeties (the name Rodney Harrison ring a bell?) Safeties coach Steve Belichick was actually reported to be showing the former Marshall safety highlights of Harrison when Grant arrived for rookie minicamp this past May

While Grant has a long way to go before being compared to Rodney Harrison, he is a sound tackler who often delivers bone-crushing hits. When Marshall would stack the box to defend the run, Grant would often roll down from the safety position and serve as a fourth linebacker. If there is one thing Belichick loves in all his players, it's versatility. 

The only three locks to make the roster at the safety position are Devin McCourty, Patrick Chung, and Duron Harmon. With Chung recovering from a shoulder injury that he suffered in Super Bowl LIII, expect the team to carry at least one more safety heading into 2019. The current competition for that final spot would consist of Nate Ebner, Terrence Brooks, Malik Grant, Obi Melifonwu and AJ Howard. Ebner and Brooks add little value outside of special teams which means Grant's main competition looks to be Melifonwu and AJ Howard. With Grant's ability to play the box safety position, he will have a great chance to prove that he is deserving to make the active roster.

3.) Jakobi Meyers, WR

Photo by Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

Photo by Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

Jakobi Meyers was another player that should have been surprised to not hear his name called during the 2019 NFL Draft. During his senior season, Meyers caught 92 balls for 1047 yards and four touchdowns. Numbers that were good enough to warrant a team using a late round pick on him.

 He exhibited exceptional jump ball ability throughout his career and backed it up at the combine with a 37.5 inch vertical. Meyers has great hands and tracks the ball well enough to think he may have a more than decent chance to make the active roster or at the very least stick around on the practice squad.

New England has a serious amount of depth at the wide receiver position but it's difficult to say that any roster spot is guaranteed behind Julian Edelman, N'keal Harry, and Matthew Slater (ST). While Phillip Dorsett has a great chance to stick around for another season in New England, he is far from a roster lock. Demaryius Thomas is likely to start the 2019 season on the pup and Josh Gordon's future is hard to predict until we know the duration of his suspension. This means that there are two or three spots up for grabs at the wide receiver position depending on how many they plan on carrying. This puts Meyers in direct competition with Dorsett, Maurice Harris, Dontrelle Inman, Braxton Berrios, and Gunner Olszewski. 

Jakobi Meyers certainly has the skills to compete at the next level. Now it's just about proving it in training camp.