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The New England Patriots sent shockwaves across the NFL when they opted to release both of their backup quarterbacks in Bailey Zappe and Malik Cunningham ahead of their roster cut down on Tuesday afternoon. Zappe had been viewed as a real contender at quarterback alongside Mac Jones, but instead, he had a pretty poor training camp and ended up getting cut.
While everyone was freaking out about these moves, both Zappe and Cunningham ended up clearing waivers and have been stashed on New England's practice squad, so their potential quarterback crisis has been averted. And in the process, the Patriots managed to keep a couple of extra players on their 53-man roster that they may not have been able to initially hold on to.
Given their needs at several other spots on the roster, this proved to be a very shrewd move from Bill Belichick to allow a couple other players in the roster crunch who may not have made it to their practice squad to return. So with that in mind, let's look at one roster cut survivor who looks primed to make a big impact with New England in 2023.
Patriots roster cut survivor: WR Kayshon Boutte
While the Patriots wide receiver room has received a lot of grief throughout the offseason, it certainly looked better than expected throughout training camp and preseason action. This was largely due to a pair of 2023 sixth-round picks in Demario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte, who both stood out and managed to find their way onto the roster. For a point in time, though, it didn't seem like Boutte would have a shot to stick around.
Boutte was once considered a first-round talent during his time at LSU, but struggled with injuries and off-field issues, which resulted in his draft stock plummeting to the point where the Patriots could easily take a flier on him in the sixth-round. Even during his initial time in New England, Boutte didn't exactly stand out, and he was outperformed pretty drastically by Douglas to kick things off.
But then Boutte found his stride, and showed flashes of his sky-high potential time and again for New England. He had a 42-yard touchdown on a quick slant against the Green Bay Packers in their second preseason contest, and he remained a top target of both Jones and Zappe on the practice fields. In a pretty quick period of time, Boutte went from being an afterthought to making a serious roster push.
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By the time the final preseason game rolled around, Boutte played sparingly, which seemed to indicate he had created a spot on the roster for himself. Sure enough, Boutte made his way onto the 53-man roster, and while he may not necessarily be the biggest “survivor” on the roster, given where he started off from in the spring, it's safe to say that Boutte has had an improbable rise with the Patriots during training camp.
Translating success from training camp to the regular season is always easier said than done, but Boutte has a legit shot to be a contributor for the Patriots in his rookie campaign. DeVante Parker, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Kendrick Bourne are leading the wide receiver depth chart, but all three guys have struggled with injuries throughout their careers, and it's not as if they are superstar talents at the position.
If any of these three guys struggle, Boutte should be able to get on the field and prove that he deserves snaps for New England. He's physical enough to play on the outside, and quick enough to play out of the slot, and his sure hands would make him a fast favorite for Jones under center. Given what we've seen in training camp, there's a decent chance it could happen.
Boutte obviously isn't going to be New England's preferred option to take the field at wide receiver, but if he does get snaps, it would be reasonable to expect him to make the most of them. Boutte seems like a solid insurance policy to have behind the Patriots top trio of wideouts, and with Bill O'Brien known to be a big fan of empty sets, he could see the field as part of that frequently used package.
Boutte has a tremendous amount of upside, which was on full display quite a bit during training camp. Now that he's earned a spot on the roster, Boutte has to take advantage of whatever snaps come his way. He may not be on the field much to start the season, but by the time the season wraps up, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Boutte put up some impressive numbers in his rookie campaign after sneaking onto the Patriots initial 53-man roster.
