Patriots make series of roster moves

Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers and rookie wide receiver Kayshon Boutte didn’t make the trip to Buffalo with the rest of their team on Saturday to play the Bills in Week 17.

Peppers (hamstring) and Boutte (illness) were both ruled out on Saturday afternoon as the Patriots traveled to Buffalo.

Additionally, the Patriots placed wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster (ankle) on injured reserve, signed safety Joshuah Bledsoe from the practice squad to the 53-man roster and elevated tight end Matt Sokol and offensive tackle Andrew Stueber from the practice squad.

The Patriots play the Bills on Sunday at 1 p.m. They now have Bledsoe, Kyle Dugger, Jalen Mills, rookie Marte Mapu and Adrian Phillips available to fill in for Peppers.

Smith-Schuster, who ends the season with 29 catches for 260 yards and one touchdown in 11 games, already was ruled out on Friday, leaving DeVante Parker, DeMario Douglas, Tyquan Thornton and Jalen Reagor available from the 53-man roster to play the Bills. The Patriots also have rookie T.J. Luther on their practice squad.

Saturday’s news means Dugger, defensive tackle Christian Barmore, cornerbacks Jonathan Jones,

Shaun Wade and Myles Bryant, tight end Hunter Henry, linebacker Anfernee Jennings and special teams captain Matthew Slater, all listed as questionable, made the trip to Buffalo.

Henry and Slater didn’t play last week against the Broncos. Sokol’s elevation puts Henry’s status in further question. The team elevated Stueber rather than activating fellow tackle Tyrone Wheatley Jr. off of injured reserve.