Patriots activate Mack Hollins from IR, restoring size to thin receiver room before Packers

The New England Patriots got a receiver back at the right time. On Saturday the team activated Mack Hollins from injured reserve, a day before the Green Bay Packers visit Gillette Stadium. Hollins had missed four games with a calf injury and returned to limited practice this week, The Boston Globe reported.

His return comes with the receiver room already thin. A.J. Brown has been ruled out for a second straight game with a knee injury, and Romeo Doubs is still on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, according to ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports. That leaves Hollins with DeMario Douglas, Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III as the four available wideouts on the 53-man roster. The Globe noted that last week's group of Douglas, Williams and Chism had no one taller than 6 feet or heavier than 200 pounds. At 6-foot-4 and 221 pounds, Hollins gives Drake Maye a bigger target on contested throws.

Hollins was the team's leading receiver when he left the Oct. 4 win at Buffalo without contact: 15 catches for 209 yards on 20 targets in four games, SB Nation's Pats Pulpit reported. The 33-year-old caught 46 passes for 550 yards and two touchdowns in 2025, his first season in Foxborough after signing a two-year deal. There was an open roster spot after cornerback Kindle Vildor was released and brought back on the practice squad, so no corresponding move was needed. The Patriots made no standard elevations for Sunday.

The injury report remains crowded. Tight end Hunter Henry, tackle Morgan Moses, cornerback Carlton Davis III and safeties Kevin Byard III and Brenden Schooler are listed as questionable. Guard Greg Van Roten will stay on injured reserve even though his practice window opened this week.

What it means against Green Bay

New England is 5-3 and went 3-1 without Hollins, including last week's 24-19 win at Miami. That followed a 30-24 loss at Chicago. The Patriots are 3-0 at Gillette Stadium, beating Pittsburgh 20-3, Las Vegas 45-17 and the Jets 26-19. All three of their losses have come on the road. Over eight games they have outscored opponents 184-162.

The board has the Patriots favored at home. Novig lists New England at -160 on the moneyline and Green Bay at +156. On the spread, Novig has the Patriots at -3.5 for +111. The best Patriots spread price among the 12 venues is BetMGM's -110 at -3, a half-point better line. The total is 44.5 at most venues. Novig prices the over at -108, and theScore Bet has the best over price at -105. For the under, Novig's +102 at 44.5 is a better payout than BetRivers' -106 at 45, which gets the extra half point. Sportsbook hold on the game runs from 3.0% to 5.3%, so the venues are close but not identical.

The kickoff is at 4:25 p.m. ET on Fox. The Patriots then travel to Detroit on Nov. 15, and early prices treat that game as close to even. Novig has New England at -100 and the Lions at -111. Full prices are on the game page, and the season lines are on the Patriots team page.