Patriots position previews: Aaron Dobson looking to make the WR cut

We know that Tom Brady is going to sit out the first four games of the regular season.

That means it’s on Jimmy Garoppolo to get on the same page as his wide receivers.

The problem? Not all of those wide receivers can get on the field. Both Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola started training camp on the PUP list (Edelman has since been cleared).

Even the most casual of Patriots fans know how important Edelman is to the team’s offense. He’s Brady’s go-to guy in a pinch and a target monster. But it’s still very early in camp and there’s no reason yet to believe that Edelman and Amendola won’t be 100 percent before the real games begin.

The locks

Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell, Matthew Slater

When Edelman went down with a broken foot last season, roughly 10 targets per game went with him. In nine regular season games he had 61 receptions for 692 yards and a career-high seven touchdowns. Edelman can expect to see similar production this season, but being a slot receiver, health is always a concern.

It was a bit of a surprise to see Amendola take a pay cut and restructure his contract to stick with the Patriots another season, but certainly nobody is complaining. When Brady looks away from Edelman and Rob Gronkowski and over to Amendola, he’s been able to make the big catch.

A newcomer to the wide receiver corps this season is Chris Hogan. Hogan signed a three-year deal with the Pats and has wasted no time in jelling with Brady and Garoppolo. The opportunity has been there with Edelman and Amendola on the shelf.

“Any chance that you get to be on the field and get an opportunity to catch, run, whatever it is, whenever you’re on this field everything is being evaluated,” Hogan recently told reporters, “so you want to make the most of every single opportunity that you get.”

Who is Malcolm Mitchell? Well, if you’ve been following training camp, you know the rookie out of Georgia has been one of the more impressive players thus far. Mitchell was taken in the fourth round after a senior year in which he caught 58 balls for 865 yards and five touchdowns. He’s reportedly catching everything that comes his way right now.

Everybody else

Nate Washington, Keshawn Martin, Aaron Dobson, Chris Harper, DeAndre Carter, Devin Lucien

Going into his fourth NFL season, Aaron Dobson doesn’t have much of a resume. The 6-foot-3 wide receiver finished with just 13 receptions last season. Injuries have plagued the first three seasons of his career, but perhaps this is the year he finally breaks out.

“I know he’s training hard, looks like he’s in good condition this year,” Bill Belichick told reporters. “Hopefully he’ll be able to stay on the field and continue to improve. I think that’s really the key, you know, it’s not just being healthy, but being healthy to practice and improve and Aaron’s worked hard, he’s made some good catches, so hopefully he keeps climbing in that direction.