Pats Pulpit
As the New England Patriots returned to the practice fields, so did an ironman on the offensive line.
Veteran center Garrett Bradbury was back as a limited participant along with rookie defensive tackle Joshua Farmer on Thursday. Both had been non-participants to begin the week due to respective hip and ankle injuries.
But running back Rhamondre Stevenson, wide receiver Kayshon Boutte and linebacker Christian Elliss all stayed sidelined as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers matchup nears.
Here’s the second injury report leading up to Sunday’s 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Raymond James Stadium.
Stevenson has now missed five consecutive practices in Foxborough due to a toe injury. The starting running back was ruled out on the final injury report of last week. And after halftime against the Atlanta Falcons, two other members of the active roster were downgraded from questionable to out. At receiver, Boutte played 18 offensive snaps before sustaining a hamstring injury. And at linebacker, Elliss played 25 snaps between defense and special teams before sustaining a hip injury.
Serving as a spectator during Wednesday’s practice, Bradbury has played 100 percent of the offensive downs for the Patriots through nine starts. As for the No. 137 overall pick across the line, Farmer has logged 10 tackles during his rookie campaign. The Florida State product stands with one stop for loss as well as one start, one batted pass and one fumble recovery. They were joined in the limited participants by Mapu. The core linebacker began the week in full while managing a neck ailment.
Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez cleared the injury report on Thursday. The reigning All-Pro had previously been listed as a full participant after going through gameday concussion protocol last weekend. He entered the blue medical tent and then the locker room to be evaluated for a head injury in the fourth quarter of the 24-23 win.
