There’s been a lot of talk this week about how the Patriots will deal with the absence of wide receiver Julian Edelman from their offense, but there’s no doubt that things will be easier on that side of the ball with a healthy offensive line.
The Patriots took some steps toward getting that group back together on Wednesday. Tackles Sebastian Vollmer and Marcus Cannon and guard Tre’ Jackson were all at practice for the team.
Vollmer was out all of last week after suffering a concussion in Week Nine, Cannon has been out with a toe injury since Week Six and Jackson has been sidelined with a knee injury since Week Eight. Getting all three back into the lineup should make it easier for Tom Brady to stay in the pocket and find non-Edelman targets in the coming weeks.
On top of that, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that linebacker Jamie Collins is over the virus that had him out of the lineup for the last two games. Collins reportedly lost weight as a result of not being able to keep down food, so it’s unclear if he’ll be able to return to the lineup. In general, though, the Patriots injury report is looking better even with Edelman out for many weeks.