Patriots put rookie Hutchins on IR as Dre’Mont Jones is ruled out against Jaguars

The Patriots lost another piece of their defensive depth Friday, placing rookie linebacker Quintayvious Hutchins on injured reserve. The club said the seventh-round pick from Boston College played in both of its first two games and recorded three assisted tackles. Its earlier injury report listed him with a knee injury; New England did not give a return date in the roster announcement.

The move arrives as the team prepares to play Jacksonville on Sunday. The Patriots' live Week 3 injury report lists edge rusher Dre'Mont Jones out with a shoulder injury after he missed practice Wednesday through Friday. Safety Craig Woodson returned for limited work Friday and is questionable, as is tight end Eli Raridon after he missed the final two practices with a thigh injury. Those designations are specific to the Jaguars game. Hutchins' injured-reserve move is a separate roster decision and cannot be treated as a one-week absence.

Jones' absence matters more immediately to the pass rush. In its offseason position review, New England described him as a veteran it expected to rely on after a seven-sack 2025 season split between Tennessee and the Chargers. Coach Mike Vrabel said on Monday that the staff would need alternate plans if Jones could not progress through the week. Friday's out designation means those plans are required for Jacksonville. The team has not published a final snap allocation for its other edge defenders.

Hutchins had just begun to get defensive work. The Patriots' Week 2 game notes say he logged his first defensive snaps against Pittsburgh, after appearing earlier on special teams. Another rookie defender, Namdi Obiazor, has been a special-teams contributor, but that does not make him a declared one-for-one replacement. The club also moved linebacker Jose Ramirez from its practice squad to the 53-man roster on Wednesday when it placed safety Dell Pettus on injured reserve. That transaction preceded Hutchins' move and is not an announced direct replacement.

For roster and fantasy decisions, the confirmed news is the lost depth: Hutchins is on injured reserve and Jones will miss Sunday's game. Woodson and Raridon still carry questionable tags, so their availability remains open until the inactive list. New England's defensive rotations against the Jaguars will be the next evidence of how the staff handles two linebacker and edge absences.