Patriots officially place rookie wide receiver Tyquan Thornton on injured reserve

The New England Patriots placed rookie wide receiver Tyquan Thornton on injured reserve Thursday afternoon.

Thornton, 22, will now miss a minimum of four games to begin the regular season as a result. The sudden Baylor product, selected in the second round of April’s NFL draft, underwent surgery to repair a fractured clavicle last week.

Before sustaining the injury against the Carolina Panthers, Thornton had caught three passes for 22 yards and a touchdown in preseason action. Had No. 50 overall been moved to injured reserve at the league’s 53-man roster deadline instead, he would have been ineligible to return in 2022.

New England’s active roster currently includes Jakobi Meyers, DeVante Parker, Nelson Agholor, Kendrick Bourne and hybrid running back Ty Montgomery at wideout. Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Tre Nixon and Lynn Bowden Jr. accompany them as part of the 16-man practice squad.

In an additional Thursday move, the organization reached an injury settlement with veteran defensive lineman Henry Anderson, according to the transaction wire.

Anderson, 31, was placed on injured reserve by the Patriots as clubs around the league reduced from an active 80. The 2015 third-round pick out of Stanford appeared in four games last campaign before going on IR due to a torn pectoral. A 43-game starter while with the Indianapolis Colts and New York Jets, Anderson now becomes a free agent. He has recorded 170 tackles, 11.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery in his career.