The Patriots are on to Cincinnati for Sunday's regular-season opener vs. the Bengals to kick off the head coach Jerod Mayo era and the game-day roster is now set for New England.
After ruling out starting left guard Sidy Sow (ankle) on Friday, the Patriots four questionable players all made the trip with the team on Saturday: RB Antonio Gibson (hip), LB Joshua Uche (foot), OT Vederian Lowe (abdomen), and late-addition S Jabrill Pepers (hip). As for elevations from the practice squad, New England used its two standard elevations on veteran guard Michael Jordan and defensive tackle Trysten Hill.
Along with New England's roster moves, the Patriots added starting safety Jabrill Peppers (hip) to the injury report. Peppers is officially questionable for Sunday's game. If he can't play, that's a major blow to the Pats defense, who will try to defend Bengals star QB Joe Burrow this week. Safety Kyle Dugger is poised for a big year, but if Peppers is out, the Pats will lean on safeties Jaylinn Hawkins and undrafted rookie Dell Pettus.
Moving to the offensive line, Jordan, who has made 29 career starts over four NFL seasons, is the favorite to replace Sow as the starting left guard this week. During the media-access portion of practice, Jordan was at left guard with the starters. However, G/C Nick Leverett also took reps at left guard in practice, so Leverett might also factor into the equation on the interior.
There's usually some rotating along the offensive line in Week 1. In the season's early stages, players haven't played an entire four quarters of football yet. The starters, at most, play about a half in preseason games, so conditioning becomes a factor when the bigger guys up front are asked to go the distance for the first time in a regular season game.
With that in mind, we could see a rotation in a few spots. For example, with Leverett's ability to play multiple interior spots, we could see a guard rotation with Leverett spelling rookie RG Layden Robinson and Jordan. Lowe, who has been limited all week in practice, might also rotate in with starting LT Chuks Okorafor if he's active for the game.
The projected starting offensive line for the Patriots is LT Okorafor, LG Jordan, C Andrews, RG Robinson, and RT Onwenu. But, as is often the case in the opener, there could be some platooning in spots where there isn't a major drop-off from the starter to the backup.
Moving to the offensive backfield, it's a positive sign for the Patriots that RB Antonio Gibson (questionable, hip) made the trip while the team did not elevate a running back from the practice squad. With three backs on the 53-man roster, that signals Gibson will likely play on Sunday as lead-back Rhamondre Stevenson's sidekick.
Stevenson projects to get the bulk of the early-down carries, but Gibson will be a factor in the offense, especially in passing situations. New England also has veteran RB JaMycal Hasty as another depth option. Between Gibson and Hasty, the Pats will likely spell Stevenson situationally with their "space" backs on Sunday.
As for Hill, the fifth-year defensive tackle had a strong training camp and preseason. However, the Patriots released the veteran on cutdown day before re-signing him to the practice squad. New England claimed DT Eric Johnson off waivers, but it appears that Hill is getting the game-day nod as the more experienced player in the Patriots defensive system.
Hill will now join core contributors Davon Godchaux, Deatrich Wise, Daniel Ekuale, and Jeremiah Pharms on the defensive line. Second-year edge rusher Keion White will also be in the mix as an early-down edge-setter and interior pass-rusher. Hill projects as a potential rotational interior rusher in passing situations as well.
The Patriots head into Sunday's clash with the Bengals as 7.5-point underdogs on the road in Cincinnati. However, the status of the Bengals two-headed monster at wide receiver is up in the air. Cincy listed star WR Tee Higgins (hamstring) as doubtful on Friday's injury report, while WR Ja'Marr Chase is questionable amidst an ongoing contract dispute. Chase is expected to play limited snaps after sitting out training camp if he does play.
The uncertainty for the Bengals offense has opened the door for a potential upset by the road underdogs. With a mostly healthy roster, the Patriots look to begin the Mayo era with a win on Sunday.
DISCLAIMER: The views and thoughts expressed in this article are those of the writer and don't necessarily reflect those of the organization. Read Full Disclaimer
