FOXBORO, Mass. — The Patriots are slowly getting all their pieces back on offense.
Rob Gronkowski returned last week against the Jets and now it sounds like, if it’s up to him, Danny Amendola will be back against the Dolphins.
“I’m feeling good and ready to go,” Amendola said on Friday in the Patriots’ locker room.
Amendola missed last week’s game after suffering a concussion against the Saints. He caught just two passes for zero yards against New Orleans. He also had one yard rushing.
Amendola has 16 receptions for 159 yards on the season in three games. He missed two games earlier in the season with a groin injury. He said that’s feeling fine, as well.
Amendola had to undergo tests to get him back on the field due to the concussion. He practiced all three days this week.
“Physical, mental,” Amendola said about the tests. “I’m sure it’s the same thing if you get into a car accident. It’s all independent doctors. The NFL does a great job of helping guys out with that sort of thing. It’s been a big deal the past three years. You have to go through the motions and listen to what they’re telling you.”
Amendola said he remembers the play where he was concussed. It was a one yard run on an end around. He said he felt fine after the game. He still missed all of last week’s practices.
“It’s frustrating,” Amendola said. “They got protocols and stuff now with a bunch of head injuries. You just gotta kind of to follow along. You might feel good and feel ready to go, but the doctors might not let you go. I feel good now and I’m ready to go.
“I’ve done pretty much everything they’ve asked me to do. I’m healthy and I’m ready to play.”
Amendola said he’s had one concussion in the NFL prior to this one. He said this isn’t going to change the way he plays on the field.
“I don’t think about it, to be honest with you,” Amendola said. “I don’t know. If it happens it happens, really. I don’t go looking to run into things and get a concussion. It’s a rough game, that’s why everyone loves to play it and watch it.”
“It’s just one of those things. It’s not gonna — I’ll be fine. It’s not going to scare me to play the way I play. I still have a job to do and I’m gonna do it.”
The last piece to the offensive puzzle now is Shane Vereen, who is out until Week 11 after being placed on short-term injured reserve. Tom Brady has struggled with his new offensive weapons, but there’s it’s impossible to tell if that will keep going all season until all the players are back on the field. The Patriots have been lucky to avoid season-ending injuries on offense.
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