The Patriots are preparing for their trip to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars at EverBank Stadium on Sunday, and several lingering injury questions remain for New England.
On Friday, the Patriots ruled out OLB Dre'Mont Jones (shoulder) and placed rookie OLB Quintayvious Hutchins (knee) on injured reserve. Both players will miss Sunday's game in Jacksonville while Hutchins will miss a minimum of four games before he's eligible to return. The Patriots are also listing rookie TE Eli Raridon (thigh) and S Craig Woodson (shoulder) as questionable for Week 3. On a positive note, CB Carlton Davis III (neck) is off the injury report and is good to go after missing last week's win over the Steelers.
Starting with the Patriots defense, there was an encouraging development at Friday's practice when starting S Craig Woodson (shoulder) returned in a limited capacity after missing the first two practices this week. Woodson still has a chance to play. Earlier this week, S Dell Pettus (ankle) was placed on injured reserve, and with Woodson banged up, the Patriots safety depth is a question mark. New England could turn to newcomer Jaylen Reed while veteran Mike Brown is a strong possibility for a practice squad elevation.
The question is whether the Patriots can play three-safety nickel packages if Woodson and Pettus are unavailable. In the first two weeks, the Patriots played 103 of 115 defensive snaps (89.6%) in nickel defense (five defensive backs). Jacksonville plays the second-highest rate of 12-personnel and runs the ball effectively with multiple tight ends. New England could run a modified three-safety package against the Jaguars two-tight-end sets or play more base defense with five-man fronts. Personnel matching could decide the game when the Jaguars have the ball.
As for the outside linebackers, the Patriots will be down two edge rushers this week without Jones and Hutchins. Jones led the Patriots with a team-high six quarterback pressures in Week 1. However, the free-agent addition injured his shoulder attempting to recover a fumble in Week 2. Jones exited the game and did not return, but head coach Mike Vrabel hinted at some optimism that Jones didn't suffer a long-term injury. New England will lean heavily on second-year OLB Elijah Ponder and rookie edge rusher Gabe Jacas vs. the Jaguars. The duo played the majority of last week's win over the Steelers, combining for a sack and seven total pressures to go along with three run stuffs, a fumble recovery touchdown, and an interception.
Ponder has had back-to-back solid performances, flashing as a sturdy edge-setter while still applying pressure on the quarterback. Jacas has also been a pleasant surprise after a slow start to his rookie training camp and preseason. The second-rounder has four total pressures and three stuffed runs, using his quickness to beat blocks and showing improved discipline against misdirection plays. The Patriots young edge rushers will need to step up this week and take on the bulk of the workload while New England signed edge rusher Jose Ramirez to the 53-man roster. Ramirez should fill Hutchins's role as a speed-rushing option in passing situations and a coverage ace on special teams.
Moving over to the offense, the Patriots will insert veteran Greg Van Roten into the starting lineup at right guard for starting Mike Onwenu (ankle, IR), according to head coach Mike Vrabel. Van Roten replaced Onwenu when he suffered his ankle injury last week and was a little rusty, allowing two pressures in Week 2, but started all 17 games for the Raiders and Giants over the last three seasons before joining the Patriots. Van Roten also has experience in OC Josh McDaniels's system with the Raiders (2024) and played next to RT Morgan Moses with the Jets, so he has familiarity with the situation he's stepping into moving forward.
The other injury question mark is rookie TE Eli Raridon's status, who did not practice in the last two sessions this week after he suffered a thigh injury against Pittsburgh. Due to Raridon's ability to block, the Steelers matched the Pats two tight end sets in base defense (19 plays). On six passes vs. Pittsburgh's base defense, New England threw for 76 yards (12.7 YPA). The rookie still has a chance to play while the Patriots have several tight ends on the 53-man roster, including Cameron Latu and Tanner Arkin, who are options to play larger roles this week. Latu stepped into a bigger blocking role when Raridon left the game in Week 2.
The Patriots next steps include possible downgrades and practice squad elevations on Saturday. New England could downgrade its questionable players to out en route to Jacksonville. As for practice squad elevations, two strong candidates are S Mike Brown and OLB Xavier Holmes to bolster defensive depth – we'll update you on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.
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