New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots have largely managed to avoid any serious injuries to start training camp. Christian Gonzalez’s hamstring injury is obviously the most important one, but all signs point to him being ready for Week 1.
That changed on Tuesday afternoon, though, as the Patriots lost one of their rookies for the entire 2025 campaign. That player would be undrafted fullback Brock Lampe, who was placed on injured reserve after the team’s latest practice.
Lampe spent four seasons with the Northern Illinois Huskies before declaring for the draft. While he didn’t get selected, he had been getting reps with New England’s starting unit early in camp. By landing on the IR, though, Lampe’s season has ended before it has even really started.
The Pats front office moved quickly to fill Lampe’s roster spot, as they signed linebacker R.J. Moten in free agency. Moten most recently took the field for the Michigan Panthers in the UFL after spending two seasons each with the Michigan Wolverines and Florida Gators in college.
“Patriots sign first-year LB R.J. Moten; Place rookie FB Brock Lampe on injured reserve,” the Patriots announced in a post on X.
Losing Lampe is a pretty big blow for New England, as he appeared set to be their top fullback option to start the season. Without him, Jaheim Bell, who is a tight end/fullback hybrid, could be in line for a bigger role, or the team could search for an external option.
As for Moten, he’s joining a pretty stacked linebacker room, so he’s likely competing for a spot on the practice squad at this point. He may be coming in at a bit of a disadvantage since training camp is a week old now, but he has everything to play for in front of him.
Injuries are simply a part of football, and the Patriots will be hoping to make it through the remainder of training camp as healthy as possible. The team will be back in action on Wednesday at 10:15 a.m. ET for their next practice.
