Through 10 games, the New England Patriots have been extremely fortunate not to lose a key starter to a long-term injury.
The Patriots did navigate their first three games of 2025 without No. 1 cornerback Christian Gonzalez, but since his season debut in Week 4, they haven’t lost a game.
New England was able to beat both the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers without No. 2 wide receiver Kayshon Boutte, and top running back Rhamondre Stevenson; fortunately, the Patriots had enough depth at those positions to not skip a beat in those games.
That could change this week. The Patriots face a short turnaround with the New York Jets coming to Foxboro for Thursday Night Football. They’re even more depleted at running back with Terrell Jennings now managing a knee issue, and they might've just tipped their hand with Tuesday’s subtle practice squad move.
New England Patriots rookie TreVeyon Henderson could be in line for RB1 duties once again vs. the New York Jets
According to ESPN's Mike Reiss, the Patriots re-signed running back Jonathan Ward to their practice squad on Tuesday; they made room by cutting wide receiver Brenden Rice, who was just signed a week ago.
NE practice squad transaction:
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) November 11, 2025
🏈 Signed: RB Jonathan Ward
🏈 Released: WR Brenden Rice
ANALYSIS: Ward was on p-squad from 10/28 to 11/4 before being replaced by Rice. Return suggests some doubt Rhamondre Stevenson (toe) and/or Terrell Jennings (knee) will be ready Thursday.
Ward has been an NFL journeyman who’s spent the majority of his career either on practice squads or as special teams depth. He was with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024, but prior that spent two seasons with Mike Vrabel’s Tennessee Titans.
He’s now a candidate to get called up to New England’s 53-man roster. The Patriots won’t announce their official injury designations for the Jets game until Wednesday evening, but a quiet roster move like this could speak volumes for guys like Stevenson and Jennings, who were both seen working off to the side during Tuesday’s practice.
No Austin Hooper or Joshua Farmer at Patriots practice.
— Alex Barth (@RealAlexBarth) November 11, 2025
There was a group of players working off to the side separate from the full team stretch:
Kayshon Boutte
Terrell Jennings
Rhamondre Stevenson
Jack Gibbens
Christian Elliss pic.twitter.com/zB0Wq081A6
The Patriots could find themselves down to Henderson, D’Ernest Johnson, and either Ward or undrafted rookie Rushawn Baker for Thursday night. That’s obviously not ideal, as the Patriots have tried to be careful with Henderson’s touches this season; he handled 14 carries against the Bucs, which matched his career high.
Jennings stepped up well in the Falcons game, rushing for 35 yards and a touchdown. The Patriots felt good enough about him to pass on adding a running back before last week’s trade deadline; although, Vrabel and company would probably love to have that decision back right now.
Dipping into free agency is always an option, but at this point, that feels unlikely. Both Stevenson and Jennings are expected to be back at some point; if both players are held back on Thursday, both should have a good shot at returning following the team’s upcoming 10-day break between games.
Either way, Henderson should lead the Patriots’ backfield for the third consecutive week, giving fans a potential encore to last week’s 147-yard, two-touchdown breakout.