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5 Free Agents The New England Patriots Should Take A Chance On

5 Players The New England Patriots Should Take A Chance On
David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

With Week 5 of the NFL season upon us, the New England Patriots are an impressive 4-0 and looking for a 5-0 start. While the team has looked very good so far, they have dealt with their fair share of injuries which could hinder them later in the season. Every team in the NFL must possess quality depth on their roster for when the injury bug starts to hit in the latter part of the season.

The Patriots are no exception. The team already has injuries to two of their three top running backs, ha lost Vince Wilfork to a torn Achilles for the rest of the season, while Rob Gronkowski is still hurt and Zach Sudfeld has been released.

As you can see, the Patriots certainly could use some depth at some of these positions for the dog days of December and January.

For the purposes of this article, I am excluding the running back position for the simple fact that I have previously written articles about running backs they should bring in. Instead, I have decided to discuss five players that the Patriots should take a look at in terms of pass catchers and along the defensive line for depth purposes.

If you disagree with any of the points or players that I am about to discuss in this slideshow, I would encourage you to express your own opinion on the matter in the “comments” section below. I will start with a receiver who played with the Patriots last year before getting hurt in Donte’ Stallworth.

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Donte' Stallworth

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Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports

Stallworth makes sense for a few reasons. He is fast, has decent size, and has played for the Patriots in two different stints. He knows the system and could step in and contribute in the offense right away, taking some pressure off of rookies Kenbrell Thompkins and Aaron Dobson in the process. Stallworth has developed a nice rapport with Tom Brady in his time in New England, and the move makes too much sense not to consider. Stallworth would give the Patriots a reliable target that Brady can look for in times of adversity, and he would cost virtually nothing.

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Juqua Parker

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Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

Juqua Parker is an interesting case as well. Although he is creeping up in age, he has still shown, as recently as last season, that he can still get to the quarterback. In 2012 with the Cleveland Browns he had a total of six sacks and 24 total tackles.

Even though the Patriots have a good duo of starting pass rushers in Chandler Jones and Rob Ninkovich, it still would not hurt the team to add a quality rusher for depth. Despite being 35 years old, the Patriots should seriously consider bringing in Parker for a workout at the very least.

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Anthony Armstrong

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Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Anthony Armstrong would be a good depth signing for the Patriots as well. While Armstrong has not exactly set the world on fire in his career, he has good speed and could be molded into a pretty good slot receiver in the right system. In 2010, he did have 44 catches for 871 yards and three touchdowns for the Washington Redskins.

Armstrong has never had a real opportunity on a contending team, nor has he played with a Hall-Of-Fame quarterback the likes of Brady. Armstrong would serve as a decent insurance chip in the event that Danny Amendola goes down because of injury again.

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Jamaal Anderson

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Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

Jamaal Anderson would be a candidate to pick up the slack after the Wilfork injury. Anderson, who has played for three teams in his career, has always served as a rotational run stuffer. While he may not be the most productive player in the stat column, he would be a nice little piece to add as depth in the event that Joe Vellano falters or gets hurt.

Anderson is only 27 years old and he has averaged roughly 20 tackles per year with very limited opportunities. He has been a free agent since August, and signing him would cost the Patriots virtually nothing.

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Evan Moore

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Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

Evan Moore would be a nice piece to put alongside Gronkowski when he returns healthy. Moore, who has played for the Browns for the majority of his career, has enjoyed a few decent seasons in Cleveland despite having a mediocre quarterback throwing him the football.

From 2010 to 2011 he had a total of 50 catches for 646 yards and five touchdowns. If he had a quarterback like Brady to work with, he could see the best production of his career. If signed, he would be a nice complementary piece to Gronkowski as he is only 28 years of age.

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