The Patriots ruled out seven players ahead of their Week 10 game in Chicago.
The New England Patriots have decided to hold onto both K.J. Osborn and Tyquan Thornton past the NFL trade deadline, but only one of the two backup wide receivers will actually see the field on Sunday versus the Chicago Bears. Whereas Osborn has made the game day roster, Thornton remains inactive as the odd man out at the position.
Week 10 therefore marks the fourth time in the last five weeks that Thornton has been made a healthy scratch. The former second-round draft pick had started the year as New England’s top X-receiver, but has since fallen down to the bottom of the depth chart.
According to his position coach, however, that does not mean he will not get a chance to still prove himself.
“What we try to do is treat each week as its own individual week,” wide receivers coach Tyler Hughes said about the Patriots’ wide receiver selection process. “Have a process to our preparation. What are our goals this week, individually, collectively as a group, offensively? Work towards those things and just keep everybody focused on improvement and the process. If we have that focus, we’ll be in good shape.”
The rest of the Patriots’ inactives look as follows:
Patriots inactives
- S Kyle Dugger
- LB Christian Elliss
- DT Eric Johnson
- QB Joe Milton III (emergency QB)
- ED Yannick Ngakoue
- OL Tyrese Robinson
- WR Tyquan Thornton
The Patriots entered Sunday with three players already ruled out. Safety Kyle Dugger (ankle), linebacker Christian Elliss (abdomen) and Friday waiver wire pickup Yannick Ngakoue all did not make the trip to Chicago.
The other four inactives, meanwhile, are all healthy scratches. With Thornton as with the other players on the roster, that is a reflection of their current position on the depth chart.
New England not pulling any surprises on the inactives list also means that the six available players listed as questionable for the contest have all been cleared. Offensive tackle Vederian Lowe (shoulder), guards Michael Jordan (ankle) and Layden Robinson (ankle), defensive tackles Daniel Ekuale (abdomen) and Jaquelin Roy (neck), and safety Marte Mapu (neck) will play versus the Bears.
Bears inactives
- OT Kiran Amegadjie
- S Jaquan Brisker
- OL Nate Davis
- OT Braxton Jones
- LB Noah Sewell
- CB Ameer Speed
- DE Darrell Taylor
- OT Darnell Wright
As previously mentioned, the Bears will be without their starting tackles on both sides of the offensive line: Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright were both ruled out on Friday because of knee injuries. Also joining them on the inactives list is nominal OT4 Kiran Amegadjie and starting safety Jaquan Brisker.
Kickoff between the Patriots and Bears at Chicago’s Soldier Field is set for 1 p.m. ET. New England is entering the game as 6.5-point underdogs, according to the latest odds provided by FanDuel.