Source: Patriots Waive Running Back Tyler Gaffney

One day before they open the preseason against the Green Bay Packers, the New England Patriots have made a move to shuffle the back end of their roster. According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the team has waived second year running back Tyler Gaffney:

#Patriots waived/injured RB Tyler Gaffney, who they claimed last year from the #Panthers, source said. They intend to put him on IR

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 12, 2015

As Rapoport states, Gaffney was claimed off waivers last year from the Carolina Panthers, who did the same thing the Patriots are trying to do now: waive the player with an injury designation and put him on injured reserve once he clears waivers.

The 24-year old, who played his collegiate career in Stanford, was originally drafted by the Panthers in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He tore his MCL in July and was waived by the team with the plan to place him on injured reserve. However, he was claimed by the Patriots, who subsequently placed Gaffney on their own injured reserve list.

Gaffney participated in this year's OTAs and minicamp and started raining camp on the active roster. However, he left the Patriots' August 1 practice session and was not seen on the field since. Apparently, the second-year player suffered another injury and looks destined to spend another year on the sidelines.

With the move, the Patriots now have one open roster spot.