Pats Pulpit
The New England Patriots will be down Rhamondre Stevenson against the Atlanta Falcons.
The starting running back remained a non-participant for three consecutive practices due to a toe injury. He has since been ruled out, as Mike Vrabel announced during his final press conference of the week.
“Everybody else doesn’t have a designation,” the head coach said.
Here’s the rest of the game statuses for Sunday’s 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Gillette Stadium.
Stevenson has started every game for the 6-2 Patriots. He stands with 99 touches, 448 yards and three touchdowns from scrimmage on the fall. But since playing a season-high 50 offensive snaps, the running back room has added seats and his return date “certainly won’t be this week.”
The organization recently promoted Terrell Jennings to the 53-man roster and signed fellow backs Jonathan Ward, Rushawn Baker and D’Ernest Johnson to the practice squad following workouts. An expanded role could also be on deck for No. 38 overall pick TreVeyon Henderson, who lost a fumble yet rushed for a team-high 75 yards on 10 carries last weekend.
“We try to figure who’s ready to go at the end of the week,” Vrabel added of the backfield depth, “and we’ll make that decision tomorrow. Just like we tell everybody when they get here on Wednesday — whoever’s here on the active or the practice squad — prepare as a starter. I feel like those guys have done that, try to do that, and continue to try to get everybody ready for the football game and see where we’re at from a numbers standpoint.”
With no Patriots listed as questionable to begin November, three veterans managing ailments will all go without game designations. All three ramped up from limited on Wednesday to full participation on Thursday and Friday.
That group includes wide receiver Stefon Diggs and center Garrett Bradbury on the offensive side despite ankle and toe injuries, respectively. The latter has played 100 percent of the downs for the interior line since the start of September, while the former has caught one touchdown and a team-high 42 passes for 470 yards. And on the defensive side of the ball, nose tackle Khyiris Tonga is also good to go after residing on the injury report for back-to-back weeks with a knee issue.
As for the Falcons, quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and wide receiver Drake London are set to return to the starting lineup following one-game absences. Both were among the full-go players to close out preparations in Flowery Branch.
