The New England Patriots played their preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts, ending in a 13-13 tie. A key incident during the game was the injury of interior offensive lineman Ben Brown. He sustained the injury while blocking during a play when quarterback Tommy DeVito was sacked.

After the incident, Brown required assistance to leave the field. He was taken to the blue medical tent and later moved to the locker room. Head coach Mike Vrabel mentioned that Brown will be sidelined for a ‘few weeks,’ potentially extending to a couple of months, missing the remainder of the preseason.

To fill the gap left by Brown’s absence, the Patriots signed veteran guard Greg Van Roten. The agreement was reached on Monday. Van Roten, 36, has over a decade of NFL experience. His career includes time with teams like the Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, Jacksonville Jaguars, Carolina Panthers, New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Las Vegas Raiders, and New York Giants. He also had a short period in the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts.

With 105 career starts, Van Roten has been a consistent presence on the field. He has started all 17 games in each of the past three seasons, alternating between the Giants and Raiders. In the 2023 season with the Raiders, he played under head coach Josh McDaniels, who is now New England’s offensive coordinator.

Last season, while with the Giants, Van Roten achieved an overall PFF grade of 65.4. This placed him at 35th out of 81 qualified guards. His pass-block grade was 70.2, ranking him 22nd. Notably, he played 1,151 snaps, the most of any guard that season.

In free agency, Van Roten was among the top available linemen. His return to McDaniels’ team occurs as the Patriots have strong Super Bowl ambitions. Van Roten brings flexibility to the guard positions, which is crucial for the Patriots’ offensive line.