The Patriots are 5-2 heading into their bye week with accolades after their strong performance in London. A 35-7 thrashing of the Buccaneers. Tom Brady was named Offensive Player of the Month which should silence his critics who were questioning the timetable of his return to prominence. IT IS SAFE TO SAY HE'S BACK. This is the third time he has earned that honor having been named Offensive Player of the Month in September and October of 2007 during his monster MVP season.
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After spending the last 3 weeks on the inactive list as a 'healthy scratch', 37-year-old Patriots wide receiver Joey Galloway has been released today, as reported in the Boston Herald this morning. 

Coming off an injury-plagued 2008 season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Galloway was signed this past spring to provide help off the bench as the Patriots 3rd receiver, but he never developed a satisfactory level of chemistry with Tom Brady, and dropped several catch-able passes earlier in the season, precipitating his stay on the inactive list the past 3 weeks.  By releasing Galloway ahead of today's 4 p.m. trading deadline, Joey is not subject to waivers and thus has the ability to sign with any team he wishes.

In addition to Galloway's release, the Patriots are also expected to release tight end Michael Matthews today, as reported in the Boston Herald this morning. These two transactions come on the heels of Tully Banta-Cain's release on Monday, though some sources speculate that Banta-Cain will be resigned sometime this week.  Even if Banta-Cain is retained, the Patriots will have 2 open roster spots, so look for further roster moves later today, or tomorrow.

Update: Add another name to the hit list: special teamer Eric Alexander has also been cut today, as reported in the Boston Herald.  Albert Breer speculates on his twitter page that both Alexander and Banta-Cain were released today to better facilitate contract extensions, assuming both players don't sign elsewhere.

Update Part II: As was rumored, the Patriots re-signed linebacker and team sack leader Tully Banta-Cain today to a multi-year contract, as reported in the Herald.  While the details are unclear, it appears that the Patriots needed to cut and then re-sign Banta-Cain in order to restructure his deal to their liking.  With 2 open roster spots, more moves are certain to come.

Update Part III: According to Ian Rapoport of the Boston Herald, tight end Eric Alexander was present at Patriots walk-through today (along with recently resigned linebacker Tully Banta-Cain), fueling speculation that he'll be resigned soon (if he's not already). 

Receiver Brandon Tate and lineman Mark LeVoir were also present at walk-through, leading some to believe that the roster spots created earlier today are intended for Tate and LeVoir.  Tate has been on the reserve/non-football injury list with a knee injury, while LeVoir has been on the reserve/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list with a shoulder injury.  The Patriots have 21 days to add either player to their active roster.  Otherwise, each player could be placed on injured reserve, effectively ending their season, or waived with an injury settlement.

Update Part IV: According to Albert Breer on Comcast Sports Tonight, the Patriots went through the process of cutting and then re-signing Tully Banta-Cain and Eric Alexander because they wanted to discuss contract extensions with the two players, but could not do so due to the nature of each player's contract.  In order to extend them, they needed to cut them and then resign them.  And due to the fact that players released after the trading deadline (which was today at 4 p.m.) have to go through waivers before a team can re-sign them (while players released before the trading deadline can be resigned immediately) the Patriots had to act today in order to go forward with contract extension negotiations.

Bad Break for Edelman: The Boston Herald is reporting tonight that backup wide receiver Julian Edelman has suffered a broken arm.  It's unclear at this time when the injury occurred or when Edelman is expected to return.

Patriots Star QB Tom Brady says he is doing everything to get himself ready for next season's opening game and that as of right now his knee is " A non issue". That sounds like the Brady we know and the guy who lead this franchise to three championships and don't  f*#*  with us status.

New England has signed Tully-Banta-Cain to an undisclosed deal to add some depth to their linebacking unit. This will be his second stint with the team having played for them from 2003-06 and spent the last two seasons with the 49ers.

He had been a somewhat productive player when utilized in passing situations and this will help this team who I feel shouldn't have let him leave in the first place.