The New England Patriots’ first day back at work after their preseason opener was an eventful one. Not only did the team hold its 13th practice of this year’s training camp, it also made a series of roster moves.

Lan Larison was sent to injured reserve and replaced on the roster by fellow running back Deneric Prince. In addition, safety Josh Minkins was waived, with his spot going to defensive edge Jereme Robinson.

Let’s break down what the moves mean from a big-picture perspective.

RB Lan Larison: Placed on injured reserve

Season over: Larison suffering a broken foot in the preseason opener against Washington and undergoing surgery soon means that his rookie season is now officially over. Due to the timing of his move to IR, the undrafted free agent is not eligible to be reactivated at a later point in the year.

His first NFL season ends after 29 combined snaps between offense and special teams. Along the way, Larison carried the ball seven times for 35 yards and a touchdown, reeled in two passes for nine yards, and ran a kickoff back 25 yards..

New-look RB4 competition: With Rhamondre Stevenson, TreVeyon Henderson and Antonio Gibson on the team, the top of the Patriots’ running back depth chart appears set in stone. Larison was unlikely to challenge the established order based on practice and in-game usage, but he would have had a chance at making the 53-man roster as a potential versatile depth option behind the top trio.

With him gone, the next men up at running back are Terrell Jennings, JaMycal Hasty and newly-signed Deneric Prince. Jennings and Hasty both have experience in New England, having first joined the team in 2024 and 2023.

Special teams depth impacted: As noted above, Larison ran one kickoff back in his preseason debut. His contributions in the game’s third phase extended beyond serving as the third returner behind TreVeyon Henderson and Antonio Gibson: he also was on the field for three kickoff coverage snaps and had one assisted tackle on a third-quarter runback.

Had Larison been able to make the 53-man roster, he likely would have played a role on special teams. Now, his spot in both areas will go to somebody else — either Jennings, Hasty or Prince, or somebody else from a different position group entirely.

Money lost: Larison being moved to injured reserve does not only rob him of a chance to make the roster, it also results in the 23-year-old missing out on some monetary intake. According to salary cap expert Miguel Benzan, he loses a total of $470,000:

If Lan Larison had made the 53-man roster his salary would have been $840K. His salary for being on Injured Reserve during the regular season will be $490K — a $350K decrease. His 2026 salary was scheduled to be $1.005M. It will now be $885K — a $120K decrease. That’s a total of $470K lost.

As for the salary cap, Larison will be on the Patriots’ pay roll with a cap impact of $490,000 this season. Meanwhile, his cap hit for 2026 will be adjusted down to the aforementioned $885,000.

Injured reserve keeps growing: Larison is now the fifth Patriot to be placed on IR since the start of the new league year in mid-March. He has joined a group that also consists of fullback Brock Lampe, offensive tackle Yasir Durant, defensive lineman Jaquelin Roy and cornerback Marcellas Dial Jr. As noted above, none of them are eligible to return to the active roster in 2025.

As a reminder, only eight players can be reactivated during the regular season. Two of those can be sent to injured reserve on roster cutdown day, but no sooner than that if they want to retain eligibility to return.

Writing on the wall: An undrafted rookie out of Cincinnati, Minkins’ release does not come as too big a surprise. In fact, the writing was on the wall given his preseason usage against the Washington Commanders last Friday: he played 14 defensive snaps (19%) and two more on special teams (7%) in the preseason opener, a sign that he was behind other players at his position and facing long odds to make the team.

Shakeup at safety: With Minkins off the team, the Patriots are now down to six players in their safety room: Jabrill Peppers, Kyle Dugger, Jaylinn Hawkins, Craig Woodson, Marcus Epps and Dell Pettus as well as special teams ace Brenden Schooler. At the moment, and given Dugger’s recent demotion to second-string, only Peppers, Hawkins, Woodsson and Schooler can be considered roster locks. The others are fighting for depth spots.

Dead cap impact: Minkins getting waived means other teams will have a chance to claim him and take on his contract. Time will tell whether that happens. For now, and operating under the assumption he makes it to free agency unclaimed, the 23-year-old is carrying a dead money charge of $52,666 this season — consisting of his signing bonus proration ($2.6k) and a salary guarantee ($50k) — as well as $5,334 in 2026.

RB Deneric Prince: Signed to 90-man roster

Athleticism galore: Entering the NFL as a rookie free agent in 2023, Prince spent time in Kansas City and Miami as well as with the UFL’s Memphis Showboats over the course of his professional career. The Tulsa product, who stands at 6-foot, 211 pounds and posted an impressive 9.57 Relative Athletic Score during the pre-draft process, projects as a between-the-tackles runner with some potential to operation as a receiver out of the backfield. Nonetheless, he is not quite as versatile a prospect as Lan Larison was, despite his athleticism.

New-look running back depth: As noted above, Prince joins a running back group headlined by Rhamondre Stevenson, TreVeyon Henderson and Antonio Gibson. The task is a tall one given his late arrival, but he will compete with Terrell Jennings and JaMycal Hasty for the RB4 spot seemingly held by Lan Larison before his trip to injured reserve.

No salary cap impact: Prince spent each of his first two NFL seasons on a practice squad, first with the Chiefs then with the Dolphins. As a result of this experience, his salary for the 2025 season projects at $960,000. With that number not high enough to qualify for Top 51 status and none of it guaranteed, the 25-year-old has no impact on New England’s salary cap at the moment.

ED Jereme Robinson: Signed to 90-man roster

Versatile skillset: Standing at 6-foot-3, 263 pounds, Robinson has the size to compete at the NFL level. He combines it with a versatile skillset, at least relative to how he was used during his college career at Kansas. If this previous usage is any indication, the 25-year-old might be able to fill a role similar to that of starting edge Keion White: a player best suited to play on the outside who also has the ability to move in in select situations.

Improved edge depth: Obviously, Robinson is a long-shot to make the roster considering that he arrived less than three weeks before roster cutdowns. Still, for the remainder of training camp and preseason he offers extra depth behind the likes of White, Harold Landry, K’Lavon Chaisson, Truman Jones, Anfernee Jennings, Bradyn Swinson, and Eljiah Ponder.

No salary cap impact, again: Like Deneric Prince, Robinson also is currently not counted against New England’s salary cap. Unless the team pulls a shocker out of its bag by including guarantees in his deal, his $840,000 base salary is not able to put him among the Top 51 needed for inclusion in the cap during the offseason.