The Patriots made a couple of roster moves on Friday.
The New England Patriots made a couple of roster moves ahead of their Week 17 game against the Los Angeles Chargers. The team activated offensive tackle Caedan Wallace from its injured reserve list to the 53-man roster, and in a follow-up move sent cornerback/punt returner/running back Marcus Jones to IR because of a recent hip injury.
Let’s analyze how the two transactions impact the Patriots from a big-picture perspective, starting with the positive news.
What activating Caedan Wallace means for the Patriots
Improved offensive tackle depth: Offensive tackle has been an issue for New England throughout the season, and adding Wallace back to the mix will not suddenly turn the group’s fortunes around in a drastic way. That said, the team’s depth at the position does look better with the third-round draft pick available:
53-man roster (4): Vederian Lowe (59 | LT), Demontrey Jacobs (75 | RT), Caedan Wallace (70), Sidy Sow (62)
Practice squad (1): Caleb Jones (76)
Reserve/left squad (1): Chukwuma Okorafor
At the moment, Wallace seemingly slots into the top backup spot behind starters Vederian Lowe and Demontrey Jacobs. In addition to those three, the Patriots also have tackle/guard hybrid Sidy Sow as potential depth; the same is true for Michael Onwenu, even though New England’s coaching staff currently employs him as its starting right guard and is unlikely to shake things up again.
Starting job up for grabs? While Wallace projects as OT3 upon returning to the active roster, his activation might be a bad sign for Demontrey Jacobs’ outlook. The first-year Patriot has given the team all he has since his arrival via the waiver wire in late August, but the potential to upgrade at right tackle is significant.
Will Wallace be such an upgrade? Time will tell, but Jacobs’ recent performances as both a run blocker and especially in pass protection mean his hold onto the starting job is anything but firm.
Rookie opportunities: Even if Wallace does not enter the starting lineup at some point over the final two weeks of the season, the Patriots activating him is a net positive. After all, it will allow him to at least continue practicing with the team for the remainder of his rookie regular season.
If he does play, he would be able to add to his current snap count. So far, Wallace has seen action in four games: he played 40 snaps at left tackle, 30 as a jumbo tight end, and 10 as a member of the field goal and extra point protection unit.
One IR-return player remains: With Wallace back on the 53-man team, the Patriots have one player remaining on their injured reserve return list: linebacker/special teamer Curtis Jacobs returned to practice earlier this week and can be activated at any time over the coming two weeks. Of course, a comeback ahead of the season finale against Buffalo is not a given either considering it would require a follow-up transaction.
What placing Marcus Jones on IR means for the Patriots
Season over: Jones moving from the active roster to injured reserve ends his 2024 season. Under NFL rules, after all, players need to remain on IR for at least four weeks before being allowed to re-join their team. With only two games left on the Patriots’ schedule, there is not enough time for the 26-year-old to be brought back.
This means that Jones has now ended a second straight season on IR; last year, he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in Week 2. In total, the 2022 third-round draft choice will have appeared in 31 of 51 possible games over his first three years in the league.
Cornerback shakeup: Playing 60.3 percent of defensive snaps, Jones served as a starter-level contributor in the New England secondary before his hip injury. The shifty nickel back lined up all over the Patriots’ defensive backfield, but was mostly employed in the slot and split out wide. He caught an interception and registered a pair of fumble recoveries in that multi-faceted role.
Removing him from the equation naturally hurts the overall depth at the position group, with the following seven cornerbacks now left available to be used over the final two weeks of the season:
53-man roster (5): Christian Gonzalez (0), Jonathan Jones (31), Alex Austin (28), Isaiah Bolden (29), Marcellas Dial Jr. (27)
Practice squad (2): Miles Battle (35), D.J. James (30)
Injured reserve (1): Marcus Jones
The Patriots’ loss against the Buffalo Bills last Sunday might give us a glimpse into how the Patriots will use their personnel at cornerback moving forward. On Saturday versus the Chargers, the team will continue to employ Christian Gonzalez as its No. 1 corner, with Alex Austin the top option opposite him.
A fully-healthy-again Jonathan Jones, meanwhile, is expected to line up primarily in the slot. If so, the veteran will mostly go up against productive rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey.
New punt returner: Marcus Jones’ impact on the Patriots extended far beyond his defensive role. He also was one of the NFL’s best punt returners, averaging 14.8 yards on 26 runbacks this season — second in the league behind only the Denver Broncos’ Marvin Mims (15.7).
The replacement plan for Jones over the final two weeks seems clear. The Patriots signed wide receiver Alex Erickson to their practice squad last week, and quickly elevated him to their game day roster against the Bills to serve as punt returner.
Erickson was brought up again for the game against L.A. on Saturday, and will likely use his third and final elevation opportunity in Week 18 for the rematch with Buffalo.
Minimal offensive impact: One of the few three-way players in the NFL today, Jones’ 2024 season ends with five offensive snaps over three separate games. In those reps, he served as a decoy first and foremost but did also manage to gain 18 yards on a catch-and-run play against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 15.
Jones moving to IR will therefore have only a minimal impact on the Patriots’ offensive operation. That being said, No. 25 did provide a level of excitement whenever he took the field alongside Drake Maye and company — something no other New England skill position player has been able to do on a consistent basis this year.