Faced with having to trim the roster down to 53 players ahead of Friday’s 9 p.m. deadline, the New England Patriots released 22 players and placed rookie free agent running back Jeff Demps on injured reserve.

Notable names on the list of players cut include Super Bowl XXXIX MVP and wide receiver Deion Branch, center Dan Koppen, safety James Ihedigbo, backup quarterback Brian Hoyer, and 2012 wide receiver draft pick Jeremy Ebert.

Branch, 33, was originally selected by the Patriots in the second round (65th overall) of the 2002 NFL draft out of Louisville before being traded by the Patriots to the Seattle Seahawks in 2006 and then reacquired through a trade with Seattle in 2010. Last season, Branch started in 15 games and caught 51 passes for 702 yards with five touchdowns.

Koppen, 32, has started 120 of 121 games for the Patriots over nine seasons with the club, earning a Pro Bowl selection in 2007 and being a part of the 2003 and 2004 Super Bowl winning teams.

Ihedigbo, 28, started in 12 of 16 regular-season games and all three postseason games for New England last season after joining the team as an unrestricted free agent from the New York Jets in August 2011. He finished the season with a career-high 72 total tackles.

Hoyer, 26, is a veteran of three NFL seasons with the Patriots after joining the team as a rookie free agent out of Michigan State in 2009. He played in 13 games and completed 27-of-43 passes for 286 yards with one touchdown and one interception in a backup role over the last three seasons.

Ebert, 23, was selected by the Patriots in the seventh round of the 2012 NFL draft with the 235th selection overall.

Julian Edelman and Matthew Slater are now the primary backups at wide receiver behind Wes Welker and Brandon Lloyd.

Demps, who signed a contract with the Patriots on August 17 after taking home a silver medal in track at the 2012 Olympic Games, injured his leg in New England’s final preseason game on Wednesday.

Other veterans released include safeties Sergio Brown, Derrick Martin, and Malcolm Williams, defensive lineman Marcus Harrison, wide receiver Jesse Holley, offensive lineman Matt Kopa, and linebackers Niko Koutouvides and Jeff Tarpinian.

Four first-year players were let go in fullback Eric Kettani, defensive lineman Aaron Lavarias, tight end Alex Silvestro and wide receiver Kerry Taylor, while five rookie free agents got the cut as offensive linemen Derek Dennis, Dustin Waldron, Jeremiah Warren and Darrion Weems, and tight end Tyler Urban were released.