After missing the past five games, New England Patriots fullback Reggie Gilliam has been designated to return from injured reserve.
Head coach Mike Vrabel made the announcement during his Wednesday press conference before the team travels to Germany to face the Detroit Lions.
Gilliam, 29, went on injured reserve at the start of October due to knee and ankle injuries. He now has a 21-day practice window to work his way back to the 53-man roster.
NFL clubs can designate a maximum of eight players for
return from injured reserve per season. The 6-foot-1, 255-pound lead blocker marks the fifth to already get the call in Foxborough, following wide receivers A.J. Brown and Mack Hollins, offensive tackle Marcus Bryant and guard Greg Van Roten, who was back at practice as a limited participant last week.
For now, the 5-4 Patriots carry an open spot on the active roster as well as the practice squad as the 6-2 Lions await.
“We’ll probably get to 53,” Vrabel said of where things stand ahead of the NFL international series. “I mean, Greg has return to play. Reggie Gilliam will be back practicing, so that’ll be good. We’ll have to see where that goes. Wednesday is the first practice of the week and it’ll be important for us to see how those guys do.”
Since arriving at Gillette Stadium on a three-year contract in March, Gilliam has played 58 snaps on offense and 39 snaps on special teams. Through four appearances elsewhere in the AFC East, he’s twice been in the starting lineup.
The former Buffalo Bill stands 98 games, including 13 starts, into an NFL run that began as an undrafted free agent out of Toledo in 2020. His career includes 153 yards and two touchdowns from scrimmage across 25 combined carries and catches.
Sunday’s kickoff at FC Bayern Munich Stadium is set for 9:30 a.m. ET. The bye week will follow.
