The Patriots are preparing for Sunday's AFC East showdown vs. the New York Jets at Gillette Stadium, and New England appears to be getting healthier heading into Week 6.
After returning to practice this week, CB Christian Gonzalez is off the injury report and is good to go while WR A.J. Brown (ankle) is officially questionable for Sunday's game vs. the Jets. Brown would need to be activated off injured reserve by 4 p.m. ET on Saturday to play Sunday.
As for the rest of the injury report, the Patriots ruled out starting CB Carlton Davis III (neck) and rookie Karon Prunty (hamstring) while six additional players are questionable: LT Will Campbell (knee), RB TreVeyon Henderson (ankle), OT Marcus Bryant (ankle, IR), LB Christian Elliss (chest), S Craig Woodson (shoulder), and CB Channing Canada (hamstring).
Starting with the potential return of two of the Patriots biggest stars, Brown opened his 21-day window by returning to practice on Wednesday and is eligible to return from injured reserve after a four-game absence. Brown suffered a high-ankle sprain 30 snaps into his Patriots debut in the season opener vs. the Seahawks. After an abrupt ending to his highly anticipated Patriots debut, Brown deferred to head coach Mike Vrabel on whether he will return this week.
"It felt pretty good. It's one step at a time with me," Brown said about his return to practice. "It's definitely still up in the air. Obviously, it's going to be Coach Vrabel's decision to see where I'm at and make the better decision for the long haul."
Although head coach Mike Vrabel said he will take it one week at a time, New England playing two games in five days with little practice time between Sunday's game vs. the Jets and Thursday night's contest vs. the Bears could factor into Brown's return. The Patriots also still have wideouts Romeo Doubs, DeMario Douglas, Efton Chism III, and Kyle Williams, all of whom contributed to New England's 45-point performance vs. the Raiders last week. On Friday, Vrabel was asked if he'd made a final decision on whether Brown will play Sunday against New York.
"We won't make that decision until tomorrow," Vrabel said on Brown's status. "I try to see where his conditioning level is and see where he may feel here after practice today."
As for Gonzalez, the Patriots top cornerback is expected to return to the lineup after he told reporters, "I'm good now. Ready for Sunday," earlier this week. Gonzalez is likely to return from a two-game absence after suffering a shoulder injury in the Pats Week 3 loss to the Jaguars. Gonzalez finished the game, but said adrenaline carried him through and his shoulder injury flared up once the team returned from Jacksonville.
"At that point, you got a lot of adrenaline. Adrenaline covers a lot of things in this sport. At that time, I felt good. Things happen, so it is what it is and I'm ready for this week," said Gonzalez.
With Gonzalez returning, the Pats cornerback will likely face-off against Jets WR Garrett Wilson for the fourth time in this best-on-best division rivalry. In the previous three matchups, Gonzalez held Wilson to eight catches for 72 yards and a touchdown on 51 routes covering the Jets wideout. Without starter Carlton Davis for the third time in four games, the Patriots will likely lean on Gonzalez, CB Charles Woods, NCB Marcus Jones, and fourth-corner Kindle Vildor.
There's some hope that the Patriots will get Brown and Gonzalez back this week while there's also optimism that starting LT Will Campbell (knee) and RB TreVeyon Henderson (ankle) avoided major injuries in last Sunday's game vs. the Raiders. Initial reports said Campbell and Henderson would likely miss game time, but the two 2025 draft picks were, somewhat surprisingly, limited participants in all three practices this week.
With Campbell, the Pats left tackle said that his knee sprain isn't as serious as the one he suffered last season. As mentioned, reports suggested Campbell would miss games with the injury, but his practice participation and questionable status suggest the second-year pro could play on Sunday. If he can't play, the Pats will likely turn to first-rounder Caleb Lomu at left tackle, who played the final 43 snaps after Campbell left last week's blowout win over the Raiders.
Lomu, who played left tackle in college, allowed just one quarterback pressure on 29 pass-blocking snaps in Week 5. The rookie was more uneven as a run blocker, allowing a stuffed run while playing jumbo tight end, but Lomu was solid overall against the Raiders. The Patriots appear to have a serviceable option in Lomu to fill in for their starting left tackle, which could factor into the decision to play Campbell if he's less than 100 percent.
With their first-round pick from the 2025 draft's status unknown, New England's second-rounder from the same rookie class, Henderson, also seemed to have dodged the injury bullet. Initial reports indicated Henderson was headed for a multi-week absence with a high-ankle sprain, the same injury that landed Brown on injured reserve. Instead, Henderson was a limited participant in all three practices this week and has a chance to play on Sunday.
Along with Henderson, the Patriots have lead-back Rhamondre Stevenson and third-string RB Cory Kiner on the active roster. New England could also elevate second-year RB Lan Larison or recently signed practice-squad RB Hassan Haskins as depth. If one of their two practice-squad running backs is elevated on Saturday, that'll indicate Henderson might sit out Sunday's game. Still, it's encouraging that he's practicing following his injury scare.
The rest of the Patriots questionable starters have been managing injuries over the last few weeks, LB Christian Elliss (chest) and S Craig Woodson (shoulder) both playing last week, so one would expect that to continue. The Pats also removed OLB Dre'Mont Jones (shoulder) and OT Morgan Moses (foot) from the injury report – they're good to go.
As for New York, the Jets ruled out three key players for Sunday's game: star RB Breece Hall (quad), WR Adonai Mitchell (finger), and EDGE Joseph Ossai (ankle). Hall is out again this week due to his quad injury, with the Jets explosive lead-back last playing in Week 3. Instead, the Jets will lean on third-year back Braelon Allen. Allen forced eight missed tackles while accumulating 108 yards after contact in rainy conditions vs. the Browns last week, so the power-oriented runner can carry the load.
New England's next steps may include activating players off injured reserve and elevating players from the practice squad. Along with Brown, backup tackle Marcus Bryant (ankle) also returned to practice this week, opening his 21-day window after the team designated him to return on cutdown day. Bryant was pushing to be the top swing tackle during training camp, so his return would boost New England's tackle depth with Campbell's uncertain status.
The Patriots must decide whether to activate Brown and Bryant off injured reserve by 4 p.m. ET on Saturday for them to be eligible to play Sunday. The Pats might also elevate a running back, likely Larison, in case Henderson can't play this week – we'll keep you updated.
The Patriots host the Jets in an AFC East clash at Gillette Stadium on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
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