additional info on Larison
Analyzing the Patriots’ latest roster moves.
www.patspulpit.com
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.
