David Carr? Really? David freakin' Carr!?



The saying "Every dog has his day" never seemed more appropriate. David Carr (yes, that David Carr) torched the Pats' depleted secondary with 192 yards and 2 touchdowns on 20-of-29 passing, placating the fears of the crowds flocking to East Rutherford who thought they'd never be able to replace the immortal Jared Lorenzen. The G-Men also had 4 backs with at least 30 yards rushing. The Pats' only scores (two O'Connell-generated touchdowns, one on the ground and one through the air) came in the fourth, but it was too little, too late at that point.

The Patriots close out the preseason 0-4, and while we know not to invest too much stock in the outcome of the exhibitions (especially when it comes to our beloved Pats), the results to this point haven't been overly encouraging. They have the league's easiest schedule (a somewhat misleading statistic as the 1-win 2007 Dolphins pull the Pats' opponents' win percentage down, like, a lot) and could probably win the East with Moss playing with both hands behind his back, but having the thinnest defense in years means that coasting to 12-win season or better will be something of a challenge for this team. I still think a 13-win season is likely, but prepare for there to be some bumps along the way.

Few more bullets to round out our coverage of the Pats' preseason exhibitions and get you caught up to speed on the rumblings regarding the cuts that will get the roster down to 53 later today:

• Matt Cassel has effectively played his way out of a Pats uniform this preseason. They gave him more than enough chances to prove he should stay, but after a 4-for-6, 37-yard performance on Thursday, it's easy to see that the Pats don't lose much - if anything - by going with Gutierrez and O'Connell as their backups this year. Maybe he can go to Cinci and revisit his college glory days by serving as Palmer's backup once again.
  
• In spite of recording 8 tackles (7 solos), it doesn't look like Victor Hobson will be around much longer. He's said to have been progressing very slowly and was having trouble picking up the Pats' system. Quite an end to a story that had Hobson pushing Jerod Mayo for a starting spot at the beginning of the preseason. Just more evidence that the Pats are happy going with the youth movement with the 'backers.
• And don't count on a Rosey Colvin return anytime soon. Mike Reiss says that unless there's something "seriously wrong" with Adalius Thomas, who missed the final 3 preseason games, Colvin won't be asked to come back.
  
• Chris Gasper of The Globe recently said he thought special teams ace Larry Izzo was a prime candidate to end up on the cutting block, but at this point that couldn't seem any further than the truth. Izzo's the type of loyal, hard-nosed player the Pats love and his spot on the team should be among the most secure.
• Kevin Faulk's one-game suspension results in the Pats being able to assign his usual roster spot to another player, meaning that they'll have to cut, trade or assign a player to the practice squad when Faulk is able to return prior to Week 2. Essentially, they'll have another week to give a few players an extra look before deciding whose spot Faulk will fill.
  
• The team should carry 7 wide receivers to start but that could change eventually. Ventrone, Aiken and Washington will round out the corps of Moss, Welker, Gaffney and Jackson. Depending on the health of Welker, Ventrone is perhaps the most likely candidate to get the boot once Faulk returns.
• Out of 5 corners, hopefully 2 starters will emerge. Hobbs, Bryant, Wheatley, Wilhite and Richardson will battle for the top 2 spots with all but Hobbs' up for grabs. Bryant has been pretty unimpressive, so it wouldn't be surprising to see Wheatley starting games pretty soon.

Be sure to check out Mike Reiss' "Reiss' Pieces" for all the latest on the Pats' cuts. ESPN's got a full up-to-the minute list of all team cuts, as well.