Patriots list 20 players on injury report ahead of Bills game

Patriots

Six players did not participate in practice on Wednesday, including Trent Brown and Hunter Henry.

The bad news? The 1-5 Patriots opened as 9.5-point underdogs going into Sunday’s home showdown against the Buffalo Bills.

The even worse news? An already shorthanded Patriots roster bit by the injury bug submitted a lengthy injury report on Wednesday evening.

In total, New England’s first injury report of the week listed 20 total players — including six who did not participate in practice at Gillette Stadium on Wednesday morning.

Here’s the full list:

DID NOT PARTICIPATE

OT Trent Brown, Chest

TE Hunter Henry, Ankle

CB Jonathan Jones, Knee

OL Riley Reiff, Knee

LB Josh Uche, Knee/Foot

DL Keion White, Concussion

LIMITED PARTICIPATION

C David Andrews, Ankle

DL Christian Barmore, Knee

DB Cody Davis, Knee

WR Demario Douglas, Concussion

S Kyle Dugger, Foot

DL Trey Flowers, Foot

DL Davon Godchaux, Ankle

DB Jack Jones, Hamstring

OL Mike Onwenu, Ankle

DB Jabrill Peppers, Knee

WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, Concussion

RB Rhamondre Stevenson, Ankle

G Cole Strange, Knee

CB Shaun Wade, Shoulder

The Patriots have already lost several key contributors to injury this season, especially on the defensive side of the ball in linebacker Matthew Judon (biceps) and cornerback Christian Gonzalez (shoulder).

New England’s loss to the Raiders on Sunday saw more valuable contributors exit early due to several ailments, including Henry, Jonathan Jones, White, Stevenson and Uche. Henry and Stevenson did return to Sunday’s game in the fourth quarter.

Along with those absences coming out of the Raiders game, Trent Brown did not practice on Wednesday due to a chest injury.

Brown has been one of the few reliable cogs on an otherwise porous offensive line this season, with his absence this weekend against a potent Buffalo pass rush likely leading to plenty of punishment for Mac Jones, Malik Cunningham, or whoever else New England throws out there on offense.

Amid a wave of misfortune, the Patriots do have some players at critical areas of the roster who are working their way toward game action. 

Cornerback Jack Jones returned to practice on Tuesday after missing the first six games of the season due to a hamstring injury. The Patriots must activate Jones within the next 21 days or he will miss the remainder of the season. Demario Douglas also returned to practice on Tuesday after missing Sunday’s loss against the Raiders due to a concussion.