FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The New England Patriots will enter Sunday’s Week 5 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders severely depleted on defense and offense after ruling out six players, head coach Mike Vrabel announced Friday.
The absences are concentrated in the secondary, where starting cornerbacks Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis III will both miss the contest at Gillette Stadium alongside reserves Channing Canada and Karon Prunty. Fullback Reggie Gilliam and leading wide receiver Mack Hollins were also ruled out by the team.
“We got six guys out. We’re going to make some roster moves. We got to have 48 for the game,” Vrabel told reporters during his final press conference of the week, as reported by SB Nation.
Injuries deplete cornerback depth
Gonzalez will sit out his second straight contest due to a shoulder injury suffered in the opening quarter of New England’s Week 3 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars, NESN reported. The standout defensive back had missed six straight practices heading into the weekend. Davis, who played every defensive snap in last Sunday’s 29-26 victory over the Buffalo Bills, was sidelined all week because of a neck ailment.
With Canada and Prunty both sidelined by hamstring injuries, New England faces major depth concerns on the perimeter. Cornerback Charles Woods remained questionable on Friday’s injury report with a shoulder problem, leaving Marcus Jones as the team’s only completely healthy regular at the position, according to Raiders Wire.
On offense, Hollins will miss the game with a calf injury sustained in the third quarter against Buffalo. Hollins, who has recorded 209 receiving yards this season, had been leading a receiving corps already missing star A.J. Brown. Gilliam was ruled out because of ankle and knee issues after missing practice Thursday, NESN noted.
Reinforcements and opponent status
Despite the long list of absences, New England received positive news in the offensive backfield. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson, who was listed as questionable after leaving the Bills game with a knee ailment, expressed confidence that he will suit up alongside rookie TreVeyon Henderson.
“I just got rolled up on. Just a little scare,” Stevenson told reporters on Friday, indicating he was “ready to go,” according to Patriots Wire.
The Patriots also saw defensive tackle Christian Barmore participate fully in Friday’s practice, Patriots Wire reported. Barmore missed the previous game with a shoulder injury and remains officially questionable, but his return would bolster a defensive line facing a Raiders offense missing key personnel of its own.
Las Vegas ruled out wide receiver Jalen Nailor with a concussion and rookie guard Trey Zuhn with a knee injury, Raiders Wire reported. In addition, wideout Dont’e Thornton was not activated from injured reserve, leaving Tre Tucker and Cody White as the Raiders’ primary wideouts for quarterback Kirk Cousins. Las Vegas also listed rookie running back Ashton Jeanty as questionable with an ankle and foot injury, putting additional focus on tight ends Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer.
Vrabel said the Patriots expect to activate special teams captain Brenden Schooler from the non-football injury list to fill an open roster spot before the 1 p.m. kickoff on Sunday, SB Nation reported.
