FOXBORO, Mass. — As expected, the New England Patriots took the field Wednesday without their injured starting quarterback.
Mac Jones was not present during the open media portion of the Patriots’ first Week 4 practice as he recovers from a reported high ankle sprain.
Reports have indicated Jones, who suffered the injury late in Sunday’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens, is expected to miss multiple weeks. But head coach Bill Belichick did not confirm those reports Wednesday morning, saying the QB was “definitely getting better” and had “made a lot of progress” since the injury.
Belichick did say veteran backup Brian Hoyer would start Sunday against the Green Bay Packers if Jones is not healthy enough to play, with rookie Bailey Zappe bumping up to second string.
Hoyer and Zappe were the only two Patriots quarterbacks practicing Wednesday.
The only other member of New England’s 53-man roster not spotted at practice was defensive tackle Lawrence Guy, who left the Ravens game with a shoulder injury and did not return. Guy has appeared in 82 of a possible 84 regular-season games since joining the Patriots in 2017, starting 80 of those.
Wide receiver Jakobi Meyers (knee), safety Kyle Dugger (knee) and linebacker Raekwon McMillan (thumb) all practiced after sitting out Sunday’s game with injuries. Their levels of participation will be revealed when the Patriots release their first injury report of the week Wednesday afternoon.
Practice squadders Cameron McGrone, LaBryan Ray and Bill Murray also remained out of practice.
The Patriots will practice again outside Gillette Stadium on Thursday and Friday before traveling to Green Bay for the first time since 2014. Kickoff for their Sunday afternoon matchup at Lambeau Field is set for 4:25 p.m. ET.
