Sportsnaut
The New England Patriots suffered a disappointing loss at home to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1. Now, the team enters Week 2 needing to get a win on the board against the divisional foe Miami Dolphins.
Ahead of this Week 2 matchup, the Patriots have to be hoping that star cornerback Christian Gonzalez is nearing healthy status. The cornerback has been out of practice and missed the entire preseason and Week 1 after injuring his hamstring six weeks ago.
Unfortunately, it’s not starting off any better this week on the Gonzalez front. Patriots insider Carlos A. Lopez reported on Wednesday that the star defender DID NOT practice with the team. It will be more telling to see his status on Thursday, as players who don’t practice on Thursday almost never end up playing that weekend.
It has to be frustrating to see Gonzalez still not practicing. At the time of the injury, it was reported that the team was holding him out of practice as a precaution, and it was even added at the time that the team wasn’t worried about his status for Week 1. Obviously, Gonzalez didn’t play in Week 1, so either the corner had a setback, or the injury is worse than initially reported.
Without Gonzalez in Week 1, the Patriots allowed a whopping 362 passing yards to Geno Smith. Former Patriot Jakobi Meyers had a big day with eight catches for 97 yards, and you have to assume the WR1 would’ve been covered by Gonzalez had he been available.
The secondary is quickly becoming a worry for the Patriots. As mentioned above, the team gave up a ton of yards to the Raiders, and a couple players alongside Gonzalez are dealing with injuries. Charles Woods is still battling concussion and groin issues, and Marcellas Dial Jr. will remain on injured reserve for at least three more games.
Also, depth corner D.J. James was waived this week, creating another opening in the room. James was a camp standout, but failed to make an impact in Week 1 with seven total snaps.
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