What we learned: Best and worst from Patriots' 37-13 preseason loss to Browns

Mike Vrabel had a point last week.

The Patriots showed once again on Thursday night in their 37-13 preseason finale loss to the Browns that they are not a deep team.

The Patriots sat 37 players against the Browns, and 31 can be described as starters or pseudo-starters. That means that roughly 22 of the players who were on the field Thursday night when the Browns’ reserve offense streamrolled the Patriots’ backup defense in the first half.

The Patriots looked like a team that lacked depth at defensive tackle, linebacker, on the edge and at cornerback.

Players who will play key backup roles on the Patriots’ defense this season allowed Browns quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who wasn’t even part of the Browns’ dismal starting QB competition, to complete 12 of 15 passes for 186 yards with three touchdowns.

BEST

— WR Kyle Williams

Williams caught two passes for 55 yards with a touchdown in the Patriots’ opening drive. It was his third touchdown in three preseason games.

Williams moves up the depth chart with Kayshon Boutte traded to the Texans.

— RB Hassan Haskins

Haskins showed up a little bit of everywhere on Thursday, flashing on special teams with a tackle on a kickoff, in pass protection and with power in short-yardage situations. He finished with 11 carries for 38 yards.

— P Matt Haack

Haack is on the roster since top punter Bryce Baringer suffered an injury in last week’s preseason win over the Eagles. Haack held well for kicker Andy Borregales and punted four times with a 46.5-yard average, placing three kicks inside the 20-yard line.

If the Patriots believe that Baringer will be out for at least four games, then they can put him on injured reserve Sunday during roster cuts. If Baringer is set to miss less than four games, then they could either keep two punters on the 53-man roster or cut Haack and hope to land him on the practice squad.

— QB Tommy DeVito

The Patriots’ backup QB delivered a perfect 45-yard touchdown pass to Williams and also carried the ball twice for 16 yards.

WORST

— CB Kindle Vildor

It was a rough start for Vildor, who has otherwise been a preseason standout. He was flagged for pass interference on the opening drive and then allowed a touchdown when he couldn’t stop Luke Floriea short of the end zone.

He let up a 21-yard catch on the first play of the second drive, as well.

— CB Marcellas Dial

Dial is battling for a spot on the cornerback depth chart. He allowed a 14-yard touchdown to Floriea on the Browns’ second offensive series.

Dial seems to be looking up at Christian Gonzalez, Carlton Davis III, Marcus Jones, Charles Woods, Vildor and Karon Prunty on the depth chart. Undrafted rookie Channing Canada has also seemingly had a better summer.

— CB Charles Woods

Woods has had a firm grasp on the Patriots’ No. 4 cornerback spot all summer, but he got burned by Browns backup wide receivers on Thursday, allowing five catches on five targets for 68 yards with a touchdown, per PFF’s in-game charting.

Unfortunately, the preseason finale showed the Patriots might not have a better option as a top backup.

— RB Lan Larison

Larison had a poor second series with two incompletions on two targets. The first was low, but Larison got his hands on it and couldn’t pull it in. The second target was a straight-up drop.

He finished with two carries for five yards and no receptions.

Larison is competing for the third running back spot behind Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson with Hassan Haskins, JaMycal Hasty and rookie Jam Miller.

What else we learned

— Here were the Patriots’ defensive starters: OLB Gabe Jacas, DT Eric Gregory, DT Joshua Farmer, OLB Jesse Luketa, LB K.J. Britt, LB Namdi Obiazor, CB Kindle Vildor, CB Karon Prunty, CB Charles Woods, S Dell Pettus and S John Saunders Jr.

— Offensive starters: QB Tommy DeVito, RB Lan Larison, WR Efton Chism, WR Kyle Williams, TE CJ Dippre, TE Tanner Arkin, LT James Hudson, LG Mehki Butler, C Jake Rizy, RG Joe Michalski and RT Caleb Lomu.

— QB coach Ashton Grant called offensive plays in place of offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.

— Backup offensive lineman James Hudson III, who has not had a strong camp, briefly left the game with an arm injury before returning. The Patriots caught a break after losing Ben Brown, Andrew Rupcich and Marcus Bryant to injury earlier this preseason.

— Rookie outside linebacker Gabe Jacas bit hard on a zone read before Browns QB Dillon Gabriel kept it for a big gain. Jacas continues to play out of control on the edge. He’s the favorite to start the season as the top backup behind Dre’Mont Jones and Elijah Ponder with Harold Landry III on the PUP list.

— Here’s the full list of players who sat out on Thursday: CB Christian Gonzalez, WR A.J. Brown, OLB Harold Landry III, WR DeMario Douglas, S Craig Woodson, OLB Dre’Mont Jones, CB Carlton Davis III, QB Drake Maye, WR Mack Hollins, LB Robert Spillane, CB Marcus Jones, S Eric Butler, S Kevin Byard, RB Tre’Veyon Henderson, RB Rhamondre Stevenson, S Brenden Schooler (NFI), FB Reggie Gilliam, OT Marcus Bryant, LB Christian Elliss, C Jared Wilson, OLB Xavier Holmes, LB Khalil Jacobs, LT Will Campbell, OL Greg Van Roten, RG Mike Onwenu, OT Lorenz Metz, LG Alijah Vera-Tucker, RT Morgan Moses, C/G Ben Brown, TE Eli Raridon, TE Hunter Henry, WR Romeo Doubs, DT Christian Barmore, OLB Elijah Ponder, DT Cory Durden and DT Milton Williams.

— Third QB Behren Morton made some mental errors in his third and final preseason. He was the star of the Patriots’ Week 2 preseason win over the Eagles, leading a fourth-quarter comeback while also filling in for Baringer at punter. Morton also had an overall strong summer in limited opportunities. Was it enough to hold onto a roster spot?