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C.J. Dippre

Patriots Rumors: Moses, LG, UDFAs

May 25th, 2025 at 6:34pm CST by Ely Allen

At 34 years old, Morgan Moses is still playing at a level that garners the three-year, $24MM deal he signed with the Patriots. If he’s able to play out the entirety of his contract, he’ll be 37 years old when he hits free agency again; for reference, the oldest offensive tackle currently in the NFL is Trent Williams at 36.

One usually doesn’t make it this long in the NFL without a couple of bumps and bruises along the way. After only playing eight games as a rookie, Moses played in every game of every season for eight straight years. His past two seasons in Baltimore and New York, though, saw him miss three games apiece as Father Time starts to catch up to him. After missing two games early last year, Moses reportedly played through a grade 2 MCL sprain, a meniscus issue, and a fracture in his knee for several weeks.

Moses was reportedly “given a clean bill of health” from the Jets’ medical staff before free agency, and according to Mike Reiss of ESPN, that came following some offseason knee surgery. As he comes back from surgery, Moses has not been participating in full-team drills at practice. Still, he’s been plenty involved despite not practicing, mentoring rookie first-round tackle out of LSU Will Cambell, who it’s presumed will be starting opposite him in Week 1.

Here are a couple other rumors coming out of New England lately:

  • Last season, the left guard position became a major question for New England as Cole Strange missed all but the team’s last three games with injury and the Patriots fluctuated between Michael Jordan and Layden Robinson in his absence. Even when Strange returned from injury, he filled a need at center instead of returning to left guard. So far in early practices, that uncertainty has remained. With free agent signing Garrett Bradbury taking the center job, Strange can move back to left guard. So far, Strange has shared the position with free agent addition Wes Schweitzer, and undrafted free agent Jack Conley out of Boston College, per Reiss. Robinson is currently not a full participant, but he, too, could end up competing for the job. It’s early, but there are several potential options for the team at that position.
  • While we did cover a couple of the Patriots’ top undrafted earners (Eastern Washington wide receiver Efton Chism III and UC Davis running back Lan Larison) when they announced those signings, Reiss provided some info on a few more that we were not aware of at the time. Per Reiss, Alabama tight end C.J. Dippre earned the highest guaranteed total ($264K), followed by Chism ($259K), North Carolina defensive tackle Jahvaree Ritzie ($218K), Larison ($175K), Cal Poly edge rusher Elijah Ponder ($115K), Conley ($110K), and Ohio State tight end Gee Scott Jr. ($95K).

Patriots Sign 15 Undrafted Free Agents

May 13th, 2025 at 2:42pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Patriots signed 15 undrafted free agents to bring their rookie class to 26 players. Here are New England’s UDFAs:

  • Demeer Blankumsee, WR (Memphis)
  • Efton Chism III, WR (Eastern Washington)
  • Jack Conley, OL (Boston College)
  • Brandon Crossley, CB (SMU)
  • C.J. Dippre, TE (Alabama)
  • Brock Lampe, FB (Northern Illinois)
  • Lan Larison, RB (UC Davis)
  • Josh Minkins, S (Cincinnati)
  • Jordan Polk, CB (Texas State)
  • Elijah Ponder, LB (Cal Poly)
  • Cam Riley, LB (Florida State)
  • Jahvaree Ritzie, DT (North Carolina)
  • Gee Scott Jr., TE (Ohio State)
  • Jeremiah Webb, WR (South Alabama)
  • Ben Wooldridge, QB (Louisana)

Chism’s production improved across each of his five years at Eastern Washington, culminating in a stellar 2024 campaign. He recorded an FCS-high 120 receptions for 1,311 yards and 13 touchdowns, earning him first-team All-American and All-Big Sky honors. The 5-foot-10 Chism projects as a slot receiver at the next level, where his toughness and agile route-running can shine. Still, he’ll face a sizable jump in overall talent, physicality, and athleticism in the NFL; his 4.71-second 40-yard dash at his pro day would’ve been the slowest among WRs at the Combine. Multiple teams were involved in a bidding war for Chism after the draft, including the Broncos, according to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, but the Patriots won his signature with $259k in guaranteed money.

Dippre spent two years at Maryland before transferring to Alabama in 2023. He was never a productive pass-catcher in college, but established himself as a consistent blocker and special teams presence, which will likely endear him to new Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. He has the size, strength, and athleticism to be a blocking TE2 in the NFL, but he will need to make significant strides as a receiver to grow into more.

Larison ran for more than 2,500 yards and 30 touchdowns across the last two years at UC Davis, but his exploits as a pass-catcher in 2024 (62 catches, 847 yards, six touchdowns) proved he had even more to offer in the NFL. His contract with the Patriots includes a $25k signing bonus and $150k in guaranteed salary, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson.

Ponder spent five years at Cal Poly, first garnering national attention with 8.0 sacks and 11.0 tackles for loss in 2021. He took a step back in 2022 but posted 25.5 TFLs and 18.0 sacks over his final two seasons, earning first-team All-Big Sky nods in each year. Ponder then put together an elite pro day performance that placed him among the most athletic edge rushers in the 2025 draft class. His 10-yard split, vertical jump, and broad jump would have led the position at the Combine and his agility scores trailed only eventual second-round pick Donovan Ezeiruaku.

Ritzie is an athletic defensive lineman with sparse production across his first three years at UNC. He broke out as a senior with 6.5 TFLs and 6.5 sacks in 2024, plus an impressive Combine performance that showed off his speed and explosiveness. His length and athleticism could be developed into a more consistent pass-rushing impact in the NFL, but he’s too susceptible to being moved off the point of attack in the run game.