Patriots Get Rare Good Injury News: Van Roten and Pettus Could Return Before Sunday's Game in Miami, and Vera-Tucker Is Out at Least Four Games

After a turbulent start, the Patriots got news they hadn't had in a while on Monday: nothing new broke. Coach Mike Vrabel told reporters at Gillette Stadium that guard Greg Van Roten and safety Dell Pettus are eligible to return from injured reserve and could practice this week, Boston.com reported. "We probably won't see him today, but maybe this week," Vrabel said of Van Roten.

The line is the story. New England played Thursday night without two starters on the interior, according to Boston.com. Left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker went on injured reserve last week with a hamstring injury, his fourth IR placement in six NFL seasons, and veteran Ben Brown, who had been filling in for right guard Mike Onwenu, missed the game with a knee injury suffered against the Jets in Week 6. Onwenu has a broken ankle. Vrabel said he doesn't believe Vera-Tucker's injury is season-ending. "It wasn't going to be this week, so we figured it was going to be at least four games, so that's why we made the decision that we made." Brown, he said, "might be out there" at practice.

Vrabel also said he'd decide on Marcus Bryant, who was designated to return from injured reserve last week. If Van Roten and Bryant come back, Boston.com noted, the line would get reinforcements it didn't have in Chicago. Otherwise, backup guards Walter Rouse and Matt Pryor could again play left guard against Miami. Vrabel praised Pryor, who has been with the team three weeks: "He's big in there. He's tough to get around. He's got heavy hands, and he gives us a chance most of the time."

Thursday's game was a one-possession loss. Chicago beat New England 30-24 at Soldier Field on Thursday Night Football, according to NFL.com. Drake Maye threw for 321 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another, but he also threw an end-zone interception to D'Marco Jackson in the first quarter, his first since Week 4. Rhamondre Stevenson caught a 48-yard touchdown with no time left in the first half. The Patriots cut the deficit to six with 37 seconds left, but Rome Odunze recovered the onside kick.

The offense's problems were narrow, and the passing game was not one of them in the aggregate. NFL Research noted it was the first prime-time game since 2018 in which two quarterbacks under 25 each threw for 300-plus yards and multiple touchdowns. The Patriots went 2-for-7 on third down, per NFL.com, and their wide receivers had seven catches on 12 targets for 87 yards with no touchdowns. A.J. Brown, a week removed from an ankle injury and three dropped passes, led the group with three catches for 48 yards. Maye's most reliable targets were his running backs and tight ends. In the three games before Thursday, he had thrown 10 touchdowns, with at least three in each game.

The defense is where the grade drops. NFL.com counted 14 missed tackles, calling it a problem for a team "Mike Vrabel teams hang their helmets on." Caleb Williams threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns, Luther Burden III had four catches for 130 yards in the first half, and Cairo Santos kicked a career-long 58-yard field goal late, after missing from 53 on the previous drive. Chicago held the ball for 12:21 of the fourth quarter to the Patriots' 2:39.

None of that is fixed by a guard, and I'd argue it's the more serious concern. A healthier line helps Maye, but missed tackles are a habit and habits take reps. The team's next game is Week 8 at Miami on Sunday, Nov. 1, according to Boston.com's report of Sunday's road game against the Dolphins. Vrabel's comments on Monday were hedged on purpose, and the first official injury report of the week will say more.

So: possible help up front, no new injuries, and a tackling problem that is going to travel to South Florida. If I'm Vrabel, I spend Wednesday and Thursday on the second one.