Mike Vrabel has been bristling at questions on his injured players for weeks, but before the New England Patriots’ flight to Munich on Wednesday, the head coach dropped a line that days later feels headline-worthy.
“The injuries and the injured reserve,” Vrabel said, “I mean, if you pay attention, we don’t have too many spots left here to bring guys back on injured reserve.”
The NFL permits teams to use up to eight IR-return designations in a season. The Patriots’ count moved to five on Saturday, when they activated guard Greg Van Roten and fullback Reggie Gilliam to the 53-man roster.
That means the Patriots have three IR-returns remaining, an important fact to consider after the team added running back TreVeyon Henderson to its lengthy injured reserve list amid a flurry of roster moves ahead of Sunday’s international game against the Detroit Lions.
The Patriots are expected to bring wide receiver Romeo Doubs and guard Alijah Vera-Tucker back from IR once they sit their required four games and are cleared medically. That leaves one proverbial return designation unaccounted for.
Patriots may have to save their final IR return for someone other than TreVeyon Henderson
As of Nov. 15, it’s hard to see that designation being used on Henderson.
New England’s second-round draft pick in 2025 released a statement at the beginning of the week revealing that he's been dealing with "an unexpected and unusual medical emergency involving a series of unexplained neurological symptoms."
— TreVeyon Henderson (@TreVeyonH4) November 6, 2026
Henderson was ruled out for the Lions game at the beginning of the week and didn’t make the trip to Germany. When asked about the status of his running back’s mysterious illness, Vrabel revealed little outside of there being no timetable for Henderson’s return. The 24-year-old was deactivated to IR a day later.
“He didn’t travel,” Vrabel said when asked of Henderson’s game status, looking a tad agitated. “That was his status. He didn’t travel. I talk to TreVeyon every day. Just like everybody else that’s not available, he's working hard to get back. And when that is I don’t know. I don’t have a timetable. But I love my interactions with him. I love talking with him and seeing how he’s doing.”
Henderson hasn’t been ruled out for the season, but it’s now fair to wonder whether we’ll see him on the field again in 2026.
TreVeyon Henderson's uncertain future leaves Patriots with a growing backfield problem
The Patriots are so thin at running back that Rhamondre Stevenson has been pushing to play through a knee injury that knocked him out of last week’s blowout loss to the Green Bay Packers. Based on New England’s practice squad call-ups on Saturday, Stevenson will be available in some capacity.
New England was linked to game-changing running backs like Jonathan Taylor and Derrick Henry prior to Tuesday’s trade deadline, but the team essentially stood pat for the second straight year.
With Henderson’s return timeline now completely up in the air, the Patriots will need to lean heavily on Stevenson. Depth pieces such as Corey Kiner, Lan Larison, and Terrell Jennings should also be in the mix depending on the matchup and injury situation.
New England’s next IR activation aside from Doubs and Vera-Tucker could end up being the eighth and final for this season. Safety Dell Pettus, linebacker Khalil Jacobs, and edge defender Quintayvious Hutchins are all players who could feasibly get there faster than Henderson.
Nothing’s set in stone just yet, but the potential to be without Henderson’s speed on offense for the remainder of this season would be a major blow to their status as AFC contenders.
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