Friday’s injury report came with both good and bad news for the New England Patriots.
The good news was that the team removed five players from the report. However, the bad news is wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster was ruled out for another game with a lingering ankle injury.
Smith-Schuster hasn’t played since his breakout performance against the Pittsburgh Steelers, when he hauled in four passes for 90 yards against his former team. There was hope that he would be able to build on that performance moving forward with quarterback Bailey Zappe under center, but injuries have kept him out of commission more often than not.
It’s a tough blow for the Patriots’ already limited receiving corps, but they’ll have to continue leaning on Demario Douglas, DeVante Parker and even running back Ezekiel Elliott to get production through the air.
Here are the full injury reports for both the Patriots and Buffalo Bills on Friday:
New England Patriots
| Player | Injury | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Game Status |
| OT Trent Brown | Illness | DNP | DNP | FP | Active |
| S Jalen Mills | Concussion | DNP | DNP | FP | Active |
| S Jabrill Peppers | Hamstring | DNP | DNP | LP | Questionable |
| DL Christian Barmore | Knee | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| LB Ja’Whaun Bentley | Knee | LP | LP | FP | Active |
| DB Myles Bryant | Chest | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| TE Hunter Henry | Knee | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| LB Anfernee Jennings | Illness | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| CB Jonathan Jones | Knee | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| ST Matthew Slater | Hamstring | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| WR JuJu Smith-Schuster | Ankle | LP | DNP | DNP | Out |
| CB Shaun Wade | Hip | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| T Tyrone Wheatley | Knee | FP | FP | FP | Active |
| WR Kayshon Boutte | Not injury-related/Personal | DNP | FP | Active | |
| RB Ezekiel Elliott | Illness | DNP | FP | Active | |
| S Kyle Dugger | LP | Questionable |
DNP: Did not practice; LP: Limited participation ; FP: Full participation
Buffalo Bills
| Player | Injury | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Game Status |
| DE Leonard Floyd | Wrist/Rib/Rest | DNP | FP | Active | |
| Edge Von Miller | Vet Rest | DNP | FP | Active | |
| LB Terrel Bernard | Ankle | LP | LP | Active | |
| DE A.J. Epenesa | Rib | LP | LP | FP | Questionable |
| S Damar Hamlin | Shoulder | LP | LP | LP | Questionable |
| S Micah Hype | Neck Stinger | LP | LP | Active | |
| RB Ty Johnson | Shoulder | LP | LP | Active | |
| LS Reid Ferguson | Right Thumb | FP | FP | Active | |
| DT DaQuan Jones | Pectoral | FP | FP | FP | Questionable |
| DB Cam Lewis | Thumb | FP | FP | Active | |
| WR Justin Shorter | Hamstring | FP | FP | FP | Questionable |
| LB Dorian Williams | Knee | FP | FP | Active | |
| DE Shaq Lawson | Illness | DNP | Active |
DNP: Did not practice; LP: Limited participation ; FP: Full participation
Elliott, Kayshon Boutte, Trent Brown, Ja’Whaun Bentley and Jalen Mills being removed from the injury report gives the Patriots a fighting chance, at the very least. Sometimes, that’s all that’s needed in a clash between division rivals.
