Branch stands at the ready
FOXBORO — Alan Branch declared himself ready for the playoffs.
The defensive tackle suffered a knee injury when the Patriots lost in Miami in Week 14 and missed the final three games of the regular season as the team was overly conservative with his recovery plan. Branch returned to practice last week and didn’t have any reservations about his status for Saturday night’s divisional round game against the Tennessee Titans when discussing the injury yesterday.
“If my number is called, I will be ready,” Branch said. “Really, I’m just here and if they want me on the field, then I feel like I have enough in me and I feel good enough to contribute. From there, it’s on the coaches.”
Branch has only practiced on a limited basis, but the Pats won’t need him to take on a full workload against the Titans regardless. He played more than 50 percent of the defensive snaps just once this season, and that was in Week 1.
While Branch wanted to be on the field down the final stretch of the regular season, he appeared to understand the greater purpose of the plan to rest him.
“I’m a ballplayer, so it sucked to sit on the sidelines or not even be there,” Branch said. “Seeing my guys out there playing and doing well, you definitely want to be on the field doing that.”
Burkhead update
Rex Burkhead, who returned to practice last week on a limited basis, was still heavily favoring his injured left knee yesterday during the team’s fully padded workout on the Gillette Stadium game field.
The running back had a brace on the knee and couldn’t complete most of his stretches that pertained to the left leg. He favored the joint while lunging to that side and also couldn’t pull back his left foot while stretching his quad.
Burkhead missed the final two games of the regular season after suffering the injury against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
If he is available against the Titans, it appears he’ll be limited, barring a rapid turnaround in the coming days. He sidestepped questions about his potential availability.
“I’m just excited,” Burkhead said. “Whatever happens, happens. Throughout the process, I was just really kind of focused on this time, excited for these games. I don’t know how else to answer that. Just excited.”
Burkhead was injured in a pile against the Steelers, and there was some initial concern that he’d be out for an extended period of time. An MRI the following day alleviated those concerns.
Despite missing six games due to injuries this season, Burkhead had a career-high 518 yards from scrimmage and tripled his career touchdown output with eight scores. Now, he has a chance to be part of his first playoff victory after the Bengals lost all three postseason affairs during his four-season tenure in Cincinnati.
“Of course, after the injury, you never know what’s going to happen, so (a longterm absence) is always in the back of your head,” Burkhead said. “When you get good news, it helps you look forward to these games a little better.”
Mitchell amiss
Malcolm Mitchell, who is still on injured reserve, was absent for the second day in a row. It’s possible this means the Patriots have shut the wide receiver down for the remainder of the season, but there has been no official word.
The Pats have until next Wednesday to activate him to the 53-man roster and won’t disclose his status on the official injury report because he isn’t on the active roster.
Several weeks ago, the Patriots operated under the assumption Mitchell wouldn’t play this season, so it was viewed as a bonus when he returned to practice in Week 17. At minimum, he got in some extra work.
Mitchell was the second and final player who was designated to return from injured reserve. Linebacker Shea McClellin also practiced before suffering another concussion and was shut down for the season in November. Defensive tackle Vincent Valentine was the only other player who was eligible to return, but the team deemed that wouldn’t happen before getting Mitchell back onto the practice field.
Talking points
The Patriots, who are 13.5-point favorites against the Titans, far and away enjoy the greatest spread of this weekend’s four divisional round games. The response to such outside optimism was predictable.
“Just got to show up and play,” defensive end Trey Flowers said. “It’s a tough team coming in here ready to face us, and they’re going to give us their best shot. We’ve got to match it.”