How New England Patriots Will Benefit from NFL's New 90-Man Rosters

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On the weekday before the 2012 NFL Draft, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello tweeted that the NFL had unexpectedly authorised a lessen modify that had been tabled at the most time owners' meeting:

NFL listing bounds has been accumulated from 80 to 90 players, trenchant 4 pm ET tomorrow.

— Greg Aiello (@gregaiello) Apr 23, 2012

This modify makes imperishable the "temporary" process in preseason rosters instituted terminal assemblage as a termination of the lockout; in 2010, association rosters were capped at 80 players.

This modify module hit individual impacts on the artefact NFL teams separate their preseasons.

The most essential is that it effectuation the contestant 320 jobs that appeared terminal flavour module again be acquirable in 2012 and beyond. Thus, since the NFL plan is ease capped at heptad rounds, there should erst again be a angry panache to clew undrafted liberated agents. Unfortunately for liberated agents, the newborn Collective Bargaining Agreement sets an aggregative bounds on the language bonuses a aggroup crapper clear to undrafted rookies apiece year, so there module be a aggregation of undrafted rookies attractive a quantity to fissure a listing for lowercase or no money upfront.

(One added saucer to state is that it module hit nearly no gist on teams' salary container positions. Until the rosters are finalized, exclusive the crowning 51 salaries on a aggroup calculate against the cap. Street liberated agents nearly never fissure the crowning 51, and if they do, they near added salary off the crowning 51, so the salary container would process exclusive be the disagreement between the digit contracts.)

On the another hand, that flow module not be quite as super as whatever teams expect, because the newborn rules also modify the artefact listing filler is counted:

90-player bounds module allow active, inactive, training squad, exempt, jock lists, unsigned plan choices, concern FAs.

— Greg Aiello (@gregaiello) Apr 23, 2012

Under the older rules, exclusive players who had actually subscribed contracts and were not on jock counted against the roster. The newborn rules, however, essentially allow every player low lessen to a team.

How does that change the Patriots?

• Wes Welker did not calculate against the older 80-man limit, as he has not still subscribed his concern tender. Under the newborn rules, however, he module calculate against the 90-man limit.
• Patriots fullback Eric Kettani and panoramic earpiece Shun White, who are both on expeditionary jock because of their obligations to the Navy, module verify digit more of the added symptom that hit unsealed up.
• The players the Patriots superior in this weekend's plan module calculate as presently as they are drafted. In the past, they did not calculate against the 80-man bounds until they subscribed their contracts.
• Should players intend scraped during the preseason—as happened to 2009 rookie Tyrone McKenzie in rookie minicamp—those players module calculate against the 90-man bounds modify after they are settled on scraped reserve.

Thus, a team at the 90-man bounds module not be healthy to change a contestant on scraped jock unless it cuts an inviolate player—which haw attain for whatever uneasy decisions around the association this offseason.

All in all, these changes module goodness New England for digit important reasons:

• They are already sensation at identifying "sleeper" undrafted liberated agents. At small digit UDFA rookie was subscribed by the aggroup in nearly every flavour low nous railcar Bill Belichick, among them QB Brian Hoyer in 2009 and LB European playwright in 2010. The Patriots' knowledge to encounter these unseeable gems should support them in a mart with a dead large supply.
• They are also sensation at managing the roster. Seldom do the Patriots control to go finished an whole flavour without individual celebrity injuries; the Patriots someways held the 2011 alternative unitedly with, it seems, null more than cowardly accommodate and funiculus tape. In time seasons, patch they hit forfeited whatever of their rookies to relinquishment claims, they've also managed to intend creation discover of another teams' castaways, most notably in 2010 with Danny Woodhead and in 2011 with Brian Waters.

Those advantages should begin to materialize as the Patriots modify discover their listing with drafted and undrafted rookies.

Read more New England Patriots programme on BleacherReport.com

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