FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Given the impact that running back Dion Lewis made with the New England Patriots early this season after signing a reserve/future deal at this time in 2014, any time the club signs a player to a reserve/future deal shouldn't be overlooked.

With this in mind, the club officially signed linebacker James Vaughters to a reserve/future deal for 2016.

Vaughters, who played in college at Stanford, had signed with the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted free agent on May 8, 2015. He was released by the team the week before the regular-season opener, then spent most of September on their practice squad before being placed on the practice squad injured list.

At Stanford, he played in 54 games with 18 starts and tallied 119 tackles (70 solo) during his career.