After being carted off in the first quarter of the home opener at Gillette Stadium, Mike Onwenu’s move has now become official.
The New England Patriots placed the starting right guard on injured reserve amid a series of transactions announced Tuesday afternoon.
Onwenu, 28, sustained a broken right ankle 15 offensive snaps into Sunday’s 20-3 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The injury arrived at the 1:08 mark in the opening quarter on a sack split between outside linebacker T.J. Watt and defensive
tackle Derrick Harmon. Quickly ruled out after being taken to the locker room, he was replaced on the interior line by veteran August signing Greg Van Roten.
Selected in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL draft at No. 182 overall, Onwenu’s tenure in Foxborough has spanned 100 games in the regular season. A former PFWA All-Rookie selection, the 6-foot-3, 350-pound Michigan Wolverines product stands with 92 starts and 5,660 offensive snaps in his versatile Patriots career.
“Again, I don’t think he’ll be available here in the short term,” head coach Mike Vrabel said during his Monday press conference when asked whether Onwenu’s injury would be season-ending. “So, I wouldn’t anticipate him being out there here in the next few weeks. If that changes and it ends up being longer than that, then we will let you guys know.”
The organization promoted punter Mitch Wishnowsky to the 53-man roster and signed tight end Tanner Conner to the practice squad in corresponding moves.
Wishnowsky, 34, reverted to the practice squad on Monday after serving as a standard elevation for the second time in as many weeks. The veteran right-footed specialist has averaged 45.3 yards per punt and 41.5 net yards per punt with no touchbacks through eight opportunities. He has doubled as New England’s holder in the absence of incumbent punter Bryce Baringer, who was placed on injured reserve following the league’s 53-man roster deadline in August and will miss at least two more games.
Signed to the practice squad at its formation, the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Wishnowsky stands 107 games into his NFL career with 352 punts for 16,182 yards and a long of 74. The former Ray Guy Award winner out of Australia, Santa Barbara City College and the University of Utah entered the league in the fourth round of the 2019 draft at No. 110 overall. He spent six campaigns with the San Francisco 49ers before making stops with the Washington Commanders and Buffalo Bills.
Conner, 28, takes the open spot on New England’s 17-man practice squad after being among a group of tight ends in for workouts to begin the week. The 6-foot-3, 232-pound Idaho State alum entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2022. He made the Miami Dolphins’ initial active roster as rookie and went on to appear in 33 games during his first stint in the AFC East.
Finishing 2025 on the practice squad of the New York Giants, Conner has caught 12 passes for 107 yards across 251 snaps on offense and 413 snaps on special teams in his career.
The Jacksonville Jaguars host next Sunday’s 1 p.m. ET kickoff at EverBank Stadium.
