FOXBORO, Mass. — Some assorted notes and observations from Wednesday’s New England Patriots practice outside Gillette Stadium:
— The New England Patriots had perfect attendance from their 53-man roster for the second straight day. The only player not spotted during the open media portion of practice was practice squad outside linebacker Tashawn Bower.
Though the Patriots have a few notable players on injured reserve (Josh Uche, Jamie Collins, etc.), they’re in much better shape health-wise than their upcoming opponent, the Tennessee Titans.
Seven Titans players were ruled out for last Sunday’s upset loss to the Houston Texans, not including superstar running back Derrick Henry and former All-Pro wide receiver Julio Jones, who are among the 17 Titans players currently on IR. Tennessee also lost No. 1 wideout A.J. Brown to a ribs injury during that game. His status for this Sunday’s matchup at Gillette Stadium remains unclear.
The Titans made a whopping 16 separate transactions Tuesday, an almost unheard-of number for this point in the season. Among those were the release of running back Adrian Peterson, who’d been signed to help replace Henry, and the addition of wideout Golden Tate, who hasn’t played since last season.
With Jones out and Brown on the mend, Tate could see significant playing time Sunday. The Titans’ other available receivers are Dez Fitzpatrick, Chester Rodgers, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and practice squadders Cody Hollister, Mason Kinsey and Austin Mack.
— Rookies Cameron McGrone and Joshuah Bledsoe continued to practice after returning from the non-football injury list on Tuesday. It remains to be seen whether either will be activated to the 53-man roster this season.
— Offensive lineman Mike Onwenu took reps at left guard during an early drill. He was the Patriots’ starter there to begin the season before shifting to right tackle and then into a reserve role following the return of Trent Brown.
Onwenu mostly played as a jumbo tight end in last Thursday’s win over the Atlanta Falcons, with Brown going nearly wire to wire at right tackle and Ted Karras sticking at left guard.
— Rookie quarterback Mac Jones sported a hood underneath his helmet on a chilly, windy day in Foxboro.
With Sunday’s forecast calling for near-freezing temperatures, this will be the first true cold-weather game for Jones, who was raised in Jacksonville, Fla., and played in the balmy SEC at Alabama.
