The Patriots’ Sunday night contest against the Broncos just got a lot harder as they’ll be without four starters.
After ruling out four players earlier in the week, the Patriots only needed to list three players as inactive. Among those who didn’t make the trip to Denver were Jabrill Peppers (hamstring), JuJu Smith-Schuster (ankle), Rhamondre Stevenson (ankle), Hunter Henry (knee), and Conor McDermott (concussion).
Along with those players, the Patriots announced that third-string quarterback Nathan Rourke, Sam Roberts, and Matthew Slater will be inactive.
Nevertheless, the Patriots will be getting back starting left tackle Trent Brown (ankle/hand) after missing last week’s affair against the Chiefs.
The biggest surprise is veteran Matthew Slater not suiting up as he will miss his first game since 2017. Slater suffered a hamstring injury during the Patriots loss to the Chiefs but returned later in the game. The 38-year-old veteran has been a vocal leader for the Patriots ever since the Patriots drafted him in 2008. This season, he has totaled 326 special team snaps.
On the offensive side of the ball, starting quarterback Bailey Zappe will be without his security blanket Hunter Henry. It’ll mark the first time Henry is inactive since signing with the Patriots in 2021. Henry currently leads the Patriots in touchdowns (six) and receptions (42). In addition, the Patriots will be without JuJu Smith-Schuster for the second straight game. Without JuJu the Patriots will have DeVante Parker, Demario Douglas, Tyquan Thornton, Kayshon Boutte, and Jalen Reagor as their available receivers. Boutte will be active for the first time since Week 12.
Moving to the offensive line, the Patriots made some roster moves earlier in the week: promoting James Ferentz to the active roster and placing Conor McDermot on the season-ending IR. In Denver, the Patriots projected starting offensive line should be LT Trent Brown, LT Atonio Mafi, C David Andrews, RG Sidy Sow, and RT Mike Onwenu.
Shifting to the defense, the only significant change is the absence of Jabrill Peppers, who has arguably been the most productive player on the team this season. Although it’s important to note, the defense will be without J.C. Jackson as they placed him on the NFI list earlier in the week. Starting cornerback Jonathan Jones will play despite being limited in practice all week. Along with Jones, rookie cornerback Alex Austin will look to continue his role and take over in Jackson’s absence. Austin played 90% of the snaps against the Chiefs last week.
The final primetime game for the Patriots will kickoff at Empower Field at Mile High, which is set for 8:15 p.m. ET.
My name is Ben Belford-Peltzman and I am the creator and writer of The Patriots Beat. I am a 17-year kid who is an optimistic pessimist about the City of Champions. I started The Patriots Beat in August of 2022 and never expected to grow so much but here we are. Feel free to email Thepatriotsbeat@gmail.com with any inquires.
