Patriots place Terrell Jennings on injured reserve ahead of preseason opener vs. Colts

The New England Patriots moved quickly to adjust their backfield depth before their Thursday preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts, placing third-year running back Terrell Jennings on injured reserve. The transaction means the Patriots will have to operate without Jennings for the remainder of the preseason window and, depending on how the injury is handled under league rules, potentially longer as they sort out their regular-season roster.

New England also announced that it has made veteran free agent JaMycal Hasty official as part of the same series of preseason roster moves. For the Patriots, the timing suggests an immediate need to keep meaningful snaps available for the running backs group during game action, especially as teams typically use early preseason contests to establish roles for players on the bubble.

Jennings, listed as a third-year player, had been part of the Patriots’ internal rotation as they continued to evaluate their offensive depth. Moving him to injured reserve is a clear report that the team viewed the issue as significant enough to take him out of practice and game availability rather than manage it as a short-term situation.

In terms of roster mechanics, placing a player on injured reserve reshapes how teams distribute carries and snaps in the remaining preseason dates. It can also change how coaches evaluate backup options, since the reps that would have gone to an injured player instead become opportunities for others to distinguish themselves in pass protection, route timing out of the backfield, and short-yardage play-calling execution.

The Patriots’ decision also frames the preseason as more than one game, because each team will use limited preseason opportunities to answer the same question: which depth players can be trusted with increased responsibilities once the roster trims begin. With Jennings out, New England’s staff will likely lean harder on the remaining running backs to show they can handle expanded workloads and sustain tempo over four quarters.

For the Colts, New England’s injury reserve move affects how Indianapolis approaches its own evaluation work. A team preparing for the preseason often plans its defensive workload and situational packages around expected offensive personnel, and a shuffled backfield can change both the personnel groupings and the tempo of early drives.

The immediate watch item for Patriots fans is how the backfield rotation looks after this move, particularly which players receive the clearest opportunity to earn deeper preseason roles. The longer view is whether the Jennings injury has any implications for the team’s early-season depth and game-planning, given that the Patriots will continue to balance evaluation with the need to remain healthy heading into the regular season.

As preseason rosters settle, New England’s next transactions and practice availability updates will provide the best indication of how the staff intends to replace Jennings’ role. Until then, the Jennings placement on injured reserve stands as a straightforward development: the Patriots are responding to a lost piece of depth by adding and activating other options ahead of the Colts game.