The New England Patriots will be without Alijah Vera-Tucker for a minimum of four games.
The organization officially placed the starting left guard on injured reserve in the hours leading up to Thursday night's matchup against the Chicago Bears.
Vera-Tucker, 27, had played 100 percent of the offensive snaps until sustaining a hamstring injury prior to halftime last weekend against his previous AFC East team. The former New York Jet went on to be listed as a non-participant on three consecutive injury reports before being ruled out for the Midwest road trip.
Arriving on a three-year contract as an unrestricted free agent in March, Vera-Tucker stands six starts into his stay in Foxborough. The 6-foot-4, 308-pound USC product entered the NFL in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft at No. 14 overall. He has started all 49 of his career appearances, spending time on injured reserve in 2022, 2023 and 2025. Now the 13th current Patriot on IR, a return to the 53-man roster will have to wait until at least the bye week in late November.
For the 8:15 p.m. ET kickoff at Soldier Field, New England elevated guard Xavier Newman-Johnson and outside linebacker Benton Whitley from the practice squad while leaving an open spot on the active roster.
Newman-Johnson, 27, signed to the practice squad in September after being hosted at Gillette Stadium on a visit. The 6-foot-2, 297-pound interior offensive lineman stands 25 games into his NFL journey and has made a handful of starts. Originally entering the league with the Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent in 2022, Newman-Johnson spent parts of two campaigns with head coach Mike Vrabel's former club. The Baylor product went on to make stops between the practice squad, 53-man roster and injured reserve of the Jets before heading elsewhere in the division. His career includes 338 snaps on offense and 68 snaps on special teams.
Whitley, 27, joined New England's 17-man scout team in September. The 6-foot-3, 255-pound edge rusher originally entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Los Angeles Rams in 2022. He has appeared in six career games since then, recording one fumble recovery and one pass defensed. The Massachusetts native and Holy Cross alum has also been a member of the Kansas City Chiefs, Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, Arizona Cardinals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cleveland Browns.
Both call-ups are scheduled to revert to the practice squad after making their 2026 debuts.
The 4-2 Patriots also ruled out guard Ben Brown and cornerbacks Carlton Davis III, Karon Prunty and Channing Canada on the final injury report of the short week. Offensive tackle Morgan Moses, linebacker Christian Elliss and safeties Kevin Byard III and Craig Woodson move forward as questionable to face the 4-2 Bears.
