The New England Patriots decided to make veteran wideout Demaryius Thomas one of their roster cuts on Saturday. However, New England is likely going to attempt to bring Thomas back to the team in the near future, per Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald.

The Patriots seem to have mapped out a plan to release Thomas to create a spot for someone to be placed on the returnable injured reserve list. Then, New England has the ability to retain Thomas without him clearing waivers.

Presently, the Patriots haven't designated anybody to the returnable IR list yet. All things considered, rookie N'Keal Harry could be a possible candidate. Harry suffered a hamstring/leg injury in Week 1 of the preseason and has been limited in practice ever since.

Any player who is designated on the injured-reserve return list is required to miss the first eight weeks of the season. The team then has the choice of whether or not to activate that player to the roster for the rest of the season.

As for Thomas, the veteran pass-catcher has been steadily making his return from a torn Achilles. The Georgia Tech alum suffered the injury with the Houston Texans last year. Thomas made his preseason debut on Thursday and didn't look like he missed any time at all.

In New England's preseason finale, Tom Brady understandably didn't receive any playing time. That didn't stop Thomas as he seemed to have a decent connection with rookie Jarrett Stidham. The four-time Pro Bowl receiver finished with seven catches for 87 yards and two touchdowns in just the first half.

The fans who were upset with the team for releasing Thomas can breathe a sigh of relief. It appears he was released, only to be signed right back.