Karen Guregian: The Patriots trim roster to 53. What’s next?

The final 53 is in place. For now.

The Patriots discarded the unwanted, and for better or worse, settled on a roster.

But that doesn’t mean all the work is done. That doesn’t mean the roster is set in stone. Far from it.

Having eight receivers in the room doesn’t make much sense. It won’t last. That number will is bound to change ahead of the Patriots season opener against the Las Vegas Raiders in 11 days.

In the big picture, while their talent pool is better than last year, it still doesn’t measure up. Mike Vrabel’s team might rip off 7-to-9 wins (I have them winning 9) given what they have, along with the benefit of good coaching, but they are weak in areas that are too important – offensive line and receiver the most notable.

Keeping eight wideouts doesn’t necessarily mean that position is a strength. The Patriots still have one of the worst receiver rooms in the league no matter the number.

And there’s little to no depth in other positions. They’re extremely thin all over the lot.

So now what?

Following the final preseason game against the New York Giants, Vrabel acknowledged the deficiencies. He said the Patriots were “so far from where we need to be.”

No need for an in-house “rat” to leak out that news flash.

If the goal is contending, and making the playoffs, they sure aren’t in the desired zone. There’s still work to do to help quarterback Drake Maye in particular.

“We’re going to continually try to strengthen the roster every way we can. There’s a couple of options, right?,” Vrabel said. “You can try to trade for players. You could try to claim some players (who are released). So, again, we’re always going to be trying to strengthen the roster, and that’s what we’ll try to do here over the course of the next 10 days.”

Front office execs Eliot Wolf and Ryan Cowden echoed that sentiment, and claimed last week if the cost was a first-round pick to make a trade and acquire someone they coveted, they’d be willing to do it.

Two players who would have made an impact with the Patriots roster, Washington wide receiver Terry McLaurin and Cincinnati edge rusher Trey Hendrickson, players who were in the middle of contract squabbles, both came to agreement on extensions Monday.

Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons, a third star who was holding-in due to unhappiness with his contract, might be the next to come to terms if and when Jerry Jones gets down to business.

So where does that leave the Patriots?

Out of luck.

At this stage, big-time moves just don’t exist. That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t give Jones a ring about Parsons.

He is an elite player and a game-changer on defense. But it remains a long shot the Cowboys will part with him. Jones is just squeezing every morsel of drama out of the negotiation. Parsons isn’t going anywhere.

Even with that, the Patriots need to be vigilant about finding upgrades and plugging holes.

They still have needs. Thanks to a string of poor drafts, they remain talent-deprived. They have plenty of cash to spend, but no big splashes to spend it on at the moment.

That means the Patriots are left to fill holes and garner depth with other teams roster rejects.

And they are sure to claim whoever they can off the waiver wire. Maybe they’ll get lucky and find some players who will contribute in a meaningful way.

Some names to watch include former New York Giants tight end Greg Dulcich, and former Tennessee Titans tackle Jaelyn Duncan.

Meanwhile, Jakobi Meyers has asked for his ticket out of Las Vegas.

Does the former Patriots receiver move the needle?

Reports suggest the Raiders don’t want to trade him. But there’s always a price.

He was a 1,000-yard receiver last year. The Patriots haven’t had one of those since Julian Edelman (2019).

Meyers does know the offense. And Josh McDaniels certainly knows the best way to utilize him.

So make the call. It can’t hurt to find out an asking price, and go from there. If the Patriots can get him for a third-round pick, make the move. If they can swap out one of their eight receivers, do the deal.

The Patriots aren’t in a position to turn their nose up at talent. They can’t be picky if the fit isn’t perfect.

With Meyers primary position being in the slot, there would be some overlap most notably with DeMario Douglas, and Stefon Diggs.

But that would be McDaniels problem to work out. Meyers may not be a No. 1 wideout. He might not be explosive, but he’s reliable. He gets open.

Even with the roster set at 53, it still behooves the Patriots to continue to make moves that will help the team. More important, help Maye make that Year 2 leap.

So their work is far from done.