Belichick on Patriots Roster Decisions, N’Keal Harry and More

While Tuesday promises to be a busy day throughout the NFL, it will certainly be busy in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The New England Patriots, as all teams in the league, are mandated to have trimmed their rosters to 53 players by 4:00pm ET.

As the team continues to craft its roster for the upcoming season, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick addressed the media on Tuesday morning. The Pats head coach said that he and the team would have a hard day of work ahead of them, and praised the efforts of the Pats personnel department to keep track of the various transactions that are sure to happen throughout the day.

Here are some additional highlights from Belichick’s Tuesday morning media meet:

On the process of evaluating players for potential roster spots:

“There’s a lot of work that goes into it. It is a similar process to the draft, as some of the younger players have more college film than pro film. But I would say it's more similar to free agency. There are a lot of factors to be determined. There is a a lot of evaluation to be done”

On the status of wide receiver N’Keal Harry:

“I think N’Keal had a great camp. Glad we have him. I think he will make a great contribution to our team. I know he has been working hard on rehab. We will continue to monitor it and see how it goes.”

On whether Harry, or his agent, have rescinded the trade request:

“That’s a conversation between him [Harry] and his agent. N’Keal and I have a good coach-player relationship. I’ve never talked to his agent…so, I dont know about that. That is between those two.”

On making a decision on the quarterback competition (follow-up on the kicker competition, as well)

“We will announce our transactions when we make them.”

On the relationship between Cam Newton and Mac Jones:

“I think our players have good relationships across the board. Our younger players are good about asking the veterans questions and our veterans are always willing to help. I see that with Cam, Mac, Brian [Hoyer] …even Stid [Jarrett Stidham] when he’s been here. It seems all positive to me, but that is really a question for them.”

On the progress of running back J.J. Taylor:

“J.J. has been great for us in all areas. He still has work to do…as all young players do. But he is working hard. His running style is great against goal line coverage, picking up the blitz, really all around. His style is difficult to stop for some defenders. He’s done well with it.”

On the abilities of Gunner Olszewski as a receiver:

“Gunner’s been able to play multiple spots for us. He’s done a good job. I don't think that he’s a finished product. But he’s come a long way. Still some areas for improvement. He can play multiple positions for us, and plays them well.”

On the progression of quarterback Cam Newton from last season:

“Again, mostly everyone is at a higher point than last year. [Cam] has certainly started at a much higher point than last year. Definitely moving in the right direction."

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