Coming out of vacation/hibernation for five minutes...

New England seventh-round pick Brandon Deaderick has signed a four-year contract with the team. The 6-foot-6, 314 pound defensive tackle out of Alabama will receive a $40,300 signing bonus as part of the $1.79 million pact.

Deaderick faces a bit of an uphill battle to make the 53-man roster at the nose tackle spot with Vince Wilfork entrenched as starter and Myron Pryor a pleasant surprise last year; Mike Wright and Damione Lewis can also play on the interior. Last year with the Crimson Tide, playing with massive Terrence Cody, Deaderick totaled 23 tackles, including 4.5 for loss.

Deaderick is the sixth of the Patriots' 12 draft picks under contract.