On his Meri way

"In Bill We Trust."

That's what the Sports Blabosphere would have you believe all Pats fans say every night as they put their little head on their pillow emblazoned with the Flying Elvis.

Don't believe it. Pats fans are always questioning the coach/GM/czar of their local football team. I know am I today.

It's cut-down day in the NFL. Each team has to get their roster down to the final 53 players that will be on the active squad. There are injured lists and practice teams that will hold some extra guys, but players will have to go. And there are always surprises.

Surprise #1. Two-time Pro Bowl safety Brandon Meriweather.

I should have put Pro Bowl in quotes because Mr. Big Bang Clock was a borderline all-star those two seasons. But he can list it on his resume nevertheless. He was a first-round pick out of Miami who had been to two Pro Bowls. Meriweather was not one of my favorite players but he still made lots of plays. And entering his fourth season I thought he might take the next step and learn to hit more than he missed. I thought he might become one of my favorite players.

But that's out because he clearly was not one of the coaches' favorite players. Especially THE coach. Belichick drafted Meriweather in the first round in '07. Belichick has already had to cut way too many high round picks from the last seven or so years. So he had to be reluctant -- if that's possible for him -- to cut another first round pick.

But cut him he did. Which tells you just how out of favor Meriweather had fallen.

Meriweather -- as you can tell in the video in the link above -- is a character. If you look at his Wikipedia page one of the categories is entitled "University of Miami Controversies." The first is a little shooting incident in 2006 (can you say foreshadowing to the offseason incident?) and the second one -- my favorite -- is when he was caught on video stomping, several times, on the helmeted head of an opposing Florida player. That was the one that made me want him on the Pats.

But the tough, nasty Meriweather never really appeared. Belichick must have thought he would be the next Rodney. Harrison. Not Dangerfield.

So now the Pats have cut James Sanders and Brandon Meriweather. That leaves what I consider a rather thin group at safety. One starter is Patrick Chung. He was great last year. But he's only entering his third season. Safety is a rather important position when it comes to stopping the pass, stopping the run ... well, important in stopping whatever offenses throw at you. Especially if the Pats play a lot more 4-3. The other three safeties currently on the roster with Chung are Sergio Brown, Josh Barrett, and James Ihedigbo.

In Bill We Trust? Not when it comes to the current roster of safeties. Not today.

Shoot. You're shot.

Usually the official start of the new season is the first day of free agency (March 5), but since there may not actually be a season in 2011 there has been very little activity so far. (Although the Pats did add veteran Marcus Stroud).

So, in what is probably fitting for this unseason, the official start of the Pats new year is the news that Pats' "Pro Bowl" safety Brandon Meriweather may or may not have shot two guys in the face on Oscar Sunday. It's not a huge leap to imagine #31 getting into trouble. He's been there before. He's doesn't run a 4/40 in smarts. I think the most damning evidence that it was Meriweather is that both men were shot in the face but were not killed. If you've seen Meriweather line up a receiver for a big hit only to knock out his own teammate, well, you get that his aim is not so good.

Whatever the truth is behind the story (and it will be talked about over and over again on sports blab radio), my advice to Meriweather is to take the Marvin Harrison defense:

1. It was my gun.

2. I was seen holding the gun moments before the shooting.

3. I was seen arguing with the victim(s) moments before the shooting.

4. The shooting took place in the parking lot outside of the bar where I was seen drinking heavily all afternoon.

5. I had a grudge against the victim for years.

6. I didn't do it.

This was the former Indy star's explanation of why he was innocent in the 2009 shooting. The Indy Police Department's response: "We find no evidence that Marvin Harrison was involved in the shooting and are not filing any charges. Go Colts!"

We can only hope the police in Apopka, Fla., are Pats' fans.

Taking stock

The Patriots have a dozen picks in this month's NFL draft. How many of them will Bill Belichick actually use? That's the $64,000 question. The thinking is that the team should use all of them to fill the many holes on the roster. A quick look at the position-by-position depth chart shows, to me, that this is still a top five AFC team without too many glaring weaknesses. OK, pass rush is a big one. But other than that ...

QUARTERBACK
Tom Brady: The future hall of famer is now a full season removed from his knee being blown out at the start of '08. He looked very ordinary in the team's playoff disaster against the Ravens, but he's still Brady. I'll take #12 at the QB position for as long as he can stand. I don't care how many mansions he builds. Backups: Fill in name of rookie/journeyman here.

RUNNING BACK
Laurence Maroney/Fred Taylor/Sammy Morris/Kevin Faulk: Missing among those four names is the stud back that can control and flat-out win games for you. That said this is still a very solid group. The Pats, despite lacking that lead back, have been a very good running team the past few years. If the team added a solid fullback and put Maroney or Taylor behind him and pounded the ball... well I'd sure be happy. But that's unlikely. If Taylor and/or Morris can stay healthy the Pats ground game will be fine. Backups: BenJarvis Green-Ellis and Chris Taylor.

WIDE RECEIVER
Randy Moss/Wes Welker/Julian Edelman: Welker's injury is the big question mark here. As is who will play the other wideout spot opposite Moss. Edelman seems more than capable of holding down the slot position till Welker returns. The verdict is out on whether we will see the '07 Moss who was unstoppable or the one of the last two seasons when he was merely unreliable. My fantasy team's name is Moss Racing. I'm not changing it. The team needs to add some depth here and hope for a return to form by Moss. I expect both to happen. Backups: David Patten, Sam Aiken, Matthew Slater, Brandon Tate, Darnell Jenkins.

TIGHT END
Alge Crumpler: The team has a veteran tight end who hopefully won't have bad drops or fumbles. That's good enough at this position. Backups: Like I said, one tight end is plenty. (See: http://tjtailgatetales.blogspot.com/2010/06/tighten-up.html)

OFFENSIVE LINE
Matt Light (LT), Logan Mankins (LG), Dan Koppen (C), Stephen Neal (RG), Nick Kaczur (RT): This starting five is so strong that LT Sebastian Vollmer -- maybe Belichick's best draft pick of the past several years -- is a backup. They protect the quarterback very well. When your quarterback is Tom Brady that is job one. If given the chance to pin their ears back I think they would be a solid run blocking line too. Backups: Vollmer, Dan Connolly, Mark LeVoir, Rich Ohrnberger, Ryan Wendell.

DEFENSIVE LINE
Ty Warren (LE), Vince Wilfork (NT), ???????? (RE): It still seems weird to not write Richard Seymour on that list. Maybe it won't feel as weird after the Pats come away with a top 10 pick from the Raiders next year. Wilfork and Ty Warren make this still one of the best D lines against the run. Wilfork alone does that. With the loss of Jarvis Green the Pats will be looking for someone to play right end. Hopefully someone with a motor who can get after the quarterback. Who fills that spot should be a focus of the draft and will be a key to the team's success on '10. There's also some solid talent in the reserves with Mike Wright and Ron Brace. Backups: Wright, Brace, Myron Pryor.

LINEBACKERS
Jerod Mayo, Tully Banta-Cain, Gary Guyton, Derrick Burgess: Oh how the names have changed. No more Bruschi, McGinnest, Vrabel, Johnson. That was a foursome that won three Super Bowl titles. One of the best ever. You can't replace guys like that quickly. It's a process that the Pats are probably at the midpoint of entering this season. Mayo's injury was a large reason for the Pats 10-6 record last year. A return to the way he was playing down the stretch of his rookie season should be expected. Banta-Cain, Guyton, and Burgess (if and when he re-signs) are all solid players but the linebacking corp needs another young potential star like Mayo. A drafting priority. Backups: Pierre Woods, Eric Alexander, Shawn Crable, Rob Ninkovich, Tyrone McKenzie.

CORNERBACK
Leigh Bodden, Darius Butler: The veteran Bodden brought back some consistency to the cornerback spot. Butler showed flashes as a rookie, but just flashes. This is another position where a young impact player who exceeds expectations and plays for a low salary for five years is sorely needed. No more Shawn Springs-type players need apply. Backups: The young duo of Terrence Wheatley and Jonathan Whilhite may step to the fore this season. The potential is there.

SAFETY
Brandon Meriweather, Brandon McGowan: Meriweather made it to the Pro Bowl in just his third season with the team. When he is good he's very good. He's just not that good often enough yet. McGowan played better than the journeyman he had looked like his first three years in Chicago. I'd prefer to see backup James Sanders as the starter. Backups: Sanders, Pat Chung.

SPECIAL TEAMS
Stephen Gostkowski: The team has no punter at the moment but there are always veteran legs out there you can rent for a season. Gostkowski is the best young kicker in the game. Almost makes me a little less bitter about letting Vinatieri go to Indy.

Scanning the depth chart two things stand out. First, the players at the offensive skill positions are not a young group. Brady, Faulk, Moss, Taylor, Patten. The team is in need of one or two young skills guys who can be the playmakers for years to come. Dez Bryant or Golden Tate maybe? The second thing? No pass rush. Those two issues will have to be priorities on April 22.