FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots’ roster is in rough shape ahead of Sunday’s primetime matchup with the Houston Texans.
A whopping eight players were missing from the start of Wednesday’s Patriots practice, including five starters:
CB Stephon Gilmore
LB Jamie Collins
LB Dont’a Hightower
S Patrick Chung
OT Isaiah Wynn
CB Joejuan Williams
TE Ryan Izzo
OL Jermaine Eluemunor
It’s possible an illness has hit New England’s locker room. Offensive tackle Marcus Cannon was out sick last Friday and remained under the weather during Sunday’s cold and rainy victory over the Dallas Cowboys at Gillette Stadium.
“I honestly didn’t expect him to play today,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said after that game. “We talked before the game and he felt like he’d be able to work through it, so we tried to help him out a little bit there at the half. But I would say overall, it was one of the top efforts I’ve seen. For a guy who just barely had enough strength to put on his uniform, went out there and played against multiple good football players.”
Cannon practiced Wednesday, as did wide receivers Mohamed Sanu (ankle) and Phillip Dorsett (concussion) and cornerback Jason McCourty (groin), all of whom missed Sunday’s game with injuries. The team will announce their levels of participation when it releases its injury report Wednesday afternoon.
The Patriots, who sit atop the AFC standings at 10-1, are scheduled to practice on Thanksgiving and again on Friday before traveling to Houston.
