Reports: More contract agreements.

[Mark Farinella]

You know the old story about how a butterfly flapping its wings in China can cause a hurricane in the Atlantic? Well, from Foxboro to the Cape, it's just a lot of sand blowing in my face. That's proof of the whirlwind of activity in the ivory towers at Patriot Place, where the team is rapidly signing its draft picks with 14 days left before the start of training camp.

In the past 24 hours, according to various reports, the Patriots have:

-- reached agreement with quarterback/wide receiver Julian Edelman, seventh-rounder out of Kent State;

-- signed wide receiver Brandon Tate, third-rounder out of North Carolina, to a four-year deal (as yet unconfirmed by the team);

-- reached agreement with nose tackle Ron Brace, second-rounder out of Boston College;

-- signed defensive lineman Darryl Richard, seventh-rounder out of Georgia Tech (confirmed by the team), and;

-- reached agreement with offensive tackle Sebastian Vollmer, second-rounder out of Houston.

That would leave the Patriots' four picks short of a full house a full two weeks before camp. Those would be safety Patrick Chung (first round), injured linebacker Tyrone McKenzie (third round), offensive lineman George Bussey (fifth round) and long snapper Jake Ingram (sixth round).