Optimism on injuries
The injury news on both Rob Gronkowski and Sony Michel is encouraging.
For starters, neither player is dealing with an issue that would keep either out for an extended period of time, according to a source.
In Gronkowski’s case, it’s not likely he’ll miss any more time.
The All-Pro tight end was suffering from back spasms, and that’s what forced him to miss Sunday’s game in Chicago. There was a considerable effort made to try and alleviate the problem and get the tight end well enough to play. It just didn’t happen.
This shouldn’t be a major problem going forward. Back spasms aren’t fun, but the source indicated he should be fine with rest. Given the fact Gronkowski has undergone three back surgeries in the past, it’s always a concern when something occurs.
It’s likely he’ll be able to play Monday night in Buffalo, but it’s still a bit of a waitand-see proposition depending how his back continues to respond. The NFL Network’s Mike Giardi was the first to report the news about Gronkowski’s back spasms.
As for Michel, the MRI he had today revealed no structural damage to his left knee, a source said, confirming an ESPN report.
Michel was injured on a play early in the second quarter after taking a handoff. His knee was twisted awkwardly as he was being ta
While a time frame for his return isn’t clear, this was the best possible news. The rookie running back, who was coming off back-to-back 100 yard games, has a history of problems with that knee. He will probably miss some time, as the plan looks like they’ll go week-to-week with him. Options at RB
James White was already one of the top producers in New England’s fourthranked scoring offense, but he could be in for an even bigger role if Michel is inactive for any games.
In addition to his eight catches for 57 yards and two touchdowns, White carried the ball a season-high 11 times on the ground for 40 yards in the Patriots victory against Chicago.
With last-place Buffalo coming up Monday night, the Patriots probably won’t need to extend White too much in terms of additional carries this week, but Belichick voiced his confidence in White’s capability to take on a larger role as needed.
“We’ll have to take it week by week, see how it goes, what type of game plan… who’s available on our side and how we want to distribute that” Belichick said. “We don’t want to overload him, but at the same time, he’s certainly capable of doing a significant amount for our football team in a lot of different ways.”
If Michel misses time, the Patriots will be down to just White and Kenjon Barner in their backfield.
Barner also recorded a season-high in carries Sunday, logging 10 rushes for 36 yards.
He would figure to see an increased workload as well as long as Michel misses time, especially on the ground.
With their depth at the position being tested, the Patriots have a few options.
They can continue to carry just two healthy running backs, something they’ve done for stretches already this year.
In terms of adding another body, a few players make sense, starting with practice squad back Kenneth Farrow. Undrafted out of Houston, Farrow spent his rookie season with the Chargers in 2017 and signed with New England late in training camp.
In the free agent market, former Patriot Mike Gillislee is an interesting possibility. Gillislee was cut by the Pats at the end of the preseason and signed with the Saints, but was released earlier this month.
At 5-foot-11, 210 pounds, Gillislee would fill a need for a bigger back to handle goal line carries and other power run situations. His familiarity with the team would allow him to step in right away. Scrambled legs
When Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky got outside of the pocket and turned into a runner Sunday afternoon, the Patriots had serious problems.
Trubisky consistently made big plays with his feet and was the leading rusher in the game with six carries for 81 yards and a score.
“Well, we didn’t do a very good job of rushing the passer – I mean, bad coaching, bad tackling, some bad playing, just not very good. I mean, he ran well, he broke a couple tackles, but not very good by us in any area,” Belichick said.
It’s an area the Pats will need to improve with a number of games against teams featuring dangerous rushing quarterbacks left on the schedule.
Bills rookie Josh Allen has shown a willingness to scramble in his brief NFL career so far. In six games, he’s already racked up 35 carries for 155 yards and three touchdowns.
Allen missed Buffalo’s game Sunday with an elbow injury, but is considered week to week and could return Monday night.
The Pats will face other top scramblers like Aaron Rodgers and Marcus Mariota in the following weeks.
“I mean, bottom line is a lot of things could be better, need to be better and a lot of things that we need to work on, and that’s schematically and fundamentally and all the above,” Belichick said.