The New England Patriots announced that veteran safety Adrian Wilson has been placed on injured reserve. This is not the short-term injured reserve designation, which would allow a player to return later in the season.

The 13-year veteran, who signed a three-year deal with the Patriots on March 16 after spending his entire career with the Arizona Cardinals, played into the second half of Thursday's preseason finale. He was considered to be on the roster bubble.

At 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, Wilson brought size and physicality to the Patriots' secondary that the team hadn't seen since Rodney Harrison. But it was also clear that he had slowed a bit, as veteran Steve Gregory was viewed to have passed him on the depth chart.

The 33-year-old Wilson played a linebacker-type role in sub packages in the preseason and also was used as more of a traditional safety.

Witout Wilson, the Patriots' safety depth chart now looks like this:

Devin McCourty

Steve Gregory

Duron Harmon

Tavon Wilson

Nate Ebner

Cornerback Marquice Cole could also play safety in a pinch, which he did in spring camps.