New England placed offensive tackle Conor McDermott on injured reserve.

The New England Patriots have signed interior lineman James Ferentz to the 53-man roster in advance of Sunday’s Mile High matchup with the Denver Broncos.

Christmas Eve is on track to mark the first appearance of the regular season for the veteran promotion, who earned Super Bowl rings with both organizations after entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2014.

In additional transactions, New England has placed offensive tackle Conor McDermott on injured reserve and elevated tight end Matt Sokol and cornerback Breon Borders from the practice squad.

Ferentz, 34, was retained on the practice squad in August after being released at the league’s roster deadline. The Iowa Hawkeye’s Patriots career has spanned 39 games, including nine starts, while playing 776 snaps on offense and 130 snaps on special teams. He has aligned from center to both guard spots over that span. Ferentz originally signed in May 2017 after spending two campaigns in Denver and his rookie campaign with then-head coach Bill O’Brien’s Houston Texans.

McDermott, 31, started five of his six contests for New England at left tackle after circling back on the practice squad in October. Three standard elevations were notched before he was added to the active roster. His season now ends on injured reserve due to a concussion. The UCLA product entered the league in the sixth round of the 2017 draft and was claimed off waivers by the Buffalo Bills following his rookie preseason. McDermott returned to Foxborough off the New York Jets’ practice squad in 2022 and reached an injury settlement in September.

Sokol, 28, served as a three-time elevation for the Patriots last season and awaits his first snaps of 2023. The blocking tight end out of Michigan State joined New England the previous May and signed to the practice squad at its formation after clearing waivers. Entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2019, Sokol made two stops apiece with the Los Angeles Chargers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions. His career includes 39 snaps on offense and 39 snaps on special teams.

Borders, 28, joined New England’s practice squad midway through September after being released by the Atlanta Falcons at the NFL cutdown and serving a two-game suspension. The 2017 undrafted free agent out of Duke has appeared 32 games, starting six, during a well-traveled run that began as a rookie with the Raiders of Oakland. He has recorded 42 tackles, one fumble recovery, one interception and seven pass deflections.

The Patriots downgraded McDermott along with tight end Hunter Henry before departing for Colorado. The team previously ruled out running back Rhamondre Stevenson, wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and safety Jabrill Peppers on the final injury report of Week 16.

Seven members of the active roster remain listed as questionable for the 8:15 p.m. ET kickoff at Empower Field.