The rookie linebacker was back on the practice fields on Tuesday.
Just two days after their Week 16 game in Buffalo, the New England Patriots were back at practice on Tuesday. Among the players spotted during the media portion of the in-stadium session was rookie linebacker Curtis Jacobs.
Jacobs has officially been designated to return from injured reserve, opening the 21-day window for him to return to the active roster.
Given that there are only two games left on the Patriots’ schedule, however, that timeline is effectively irrelevant. The team can bring Jacobs back to its 53-man roster at any time between now and its season finale on the weekend of January 4.
Jacobs, 22, arrived in New England as a waiver wire pickup in late August. The Penn State product, who had entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with the Kansas City Chiefs, went on to carve out a regular role on special teams. In total, he was on the field for 136 kicking game snaps plus 23 more on defense until sustaining a head injury in Week 11.
That injury eventually prompted the Patriots to send him to IR in mid-November. Now, Jacobs is back on the practice fields — a positive sign for his recovery, if nothing else.
The Patriots will host the Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium on Saturday. Kickoff for the standalone game is set for 1 p.m. ET.