The New England Patriots needed to clear a spot on their 90-man offseason roster after completing their trade for wide receiver A.J. Brown, and they did so by moving a member of their tight end group to injured reserve. Julian Hill, who had recently suffered a knee injury in practice, was placed on IR on Monday in a move that has ended his 2026 season before it truly even began.
With the dust from the Brown trade having cleared a bit assess what the move means for New England.
New TE2 needed
When the Patriots signed
Hill to a three-year, $15 million free agency contract in March, their intentions were clear. He joined the team because of his blocking prowess and ability to complement Hunter Henry as a rotational No. 2 at the tight end position.
With Hill no longer factoring into the mix for the 2026 season, the Patriots are forced to adjust. On Tuesday, during the second open organized team activity of the spring, they did so by inserting tight end/fullback hybrid Jack Westover as their TE2. Meanwhile, third-round rookie Eli Raridon and second-year man C.J. Dippre also saw an uptick in snaps.
With those three seemingly the clubhouse leaders in the competition for the second spot, the tight end depth chart currently looks like this:
90-man roster (5): Hunter Henry (85), Jack Westover (37), Eli Raridon (82), C.J. Dippre (81), Tanner Arkin (84)
Injured reserve: Julian Hill (80)
Had he remained healthy, Hill would have been a lock to make the Patriots’ roster this fall. He likely also would have seen prominent snaps. Now, however, the depth behind Henry is being tested.
Acquisition potential
Even though he failed to sustain his momentum into the playoffs, the Patriots can feel good about Hunter Henry as their top tight end heading into 2026. Likewise, Eli Raridon is an intriguing prospect capable of eventually filling a similar all-around role at the position.
Despite all that, however, the Patriots appear to be in the market for more help at the position for the upcoming season. Henry, after all, is getting up there in age while the four other active TEs on the roster are all unproven.
It would therefore not be a surprise to see the team host some veteran free agents on workouts in the near future.
Cap savings
Removing Hill from the active roster for the season also has an impact on the Patriots’ salary cap, albeit not this season. He will still receive a regular base salary this year and is entitled to his signing bonus.
However, with him failing to earn any of his per-game active roster bonuses this season, the amount initially classified as likely to be earned — 14 of 17 installments based on his 14 in-game appearances last year — will be credited to New England’s 2027 cap. This means that the team will eventually get a credit of $630,000 next year.
In addition, Hill’s 2027 cap number has also changed. Previously at $5.4 million, it has since dropped to $4.635 million: with all of his roster bonuses now seen as unlikely to be earned, the maximum bonus amount of $765,000 definitively will not count against the Patriots’ books next season and only become relevant again once earned.
First reserve addition
Up until Hill went down, the Patriots had avoided any major injuries since the start of their offseason workout program in April. The 25-year-old therefore now has earned the dubious distinction of being the first member of the 2026 to be placed on injured reserve and removed from the active roster for the season.
And just as a reminder about the NFL’s IR-return procedure: starting in 2024, teams are allowed to designate up to two players to return from injured reserve even if sent there before the roster cutdown deadline. However, to be eligible, the move to IR would have to take place “during the business day of the final roster reduction,” meaning on cutdown day itself.
Even if Hill’s injury would not have been season-ending per se — which, again, it is — placing him on IR at this point in time would disqualify him from being reactivated at any point during the 2026 season.
