Injury luck has played a big part in the New England Patriots’ success so far this season, but it wasn’t on their side last Thursday against the New York Jets. Defensive tackle Milton Williams exited the game on the first series because of what was later diagnosed as a high ankle sprain.
As a consequence of the injury, the Patriots have since sent Williams to their injured reserve. Not only does this mean that the 26-year-old will have to sit out at least the next four games, it also has a larger
impact on the team and its roster.
Big matchups missed
The obvious takeaway from Williams going to IR is that he will not be available for some of the biggest games remaining on the Patriots’ schedule:
- Week 12: at Cincinnati Bengals — 1 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 23
- Week 13: vs. New York Giants — 8:15 p.m. ET Monday, Dec. 1
- Week 15: vs. Buffalo Bills — 1 p.m. ET Sunday, Dec. 14
- Week 16: at Baltimore Ravens — 1 p.m. ET Sunday, Dec. 21
While the next two games against the Bengals and Giants are very much winnable considering both teams’ performances so far this season, the next two versus the Bills and Ravens are a different story. Sure, the Patriots have been the superior team up until this point, but facing two dynamic offenses without one of their best defenders is a definitive challenge.
If there is one positive to the scheduling, though, it is that the Patriots will be on their bye between Weeks 13 and 15. This effectively gives Williams an extra week to recover and get ready for the home stretch and a likely playoff run.
Starting spot opens up
Heading into the Thursday night game against the Jets, Williams had been the Patriots’ No. 1 interior defensive lineman in terms of snaps played. Over the first 10 games of the season — all starts — he had been on the field for 65% of snaps while also registering 27 tackles as well as 3.5 sacks.
While the tackle and sack numbers do not look particularly impressive, the offseason signing has played a crucial role in the Patriots’ defensive operation: Williams has had an impact both as a run defender and as an interior pass rusher, and together with Christian Barmore formed one of the best interior duos in football.
With him now out for the foreseeable future, the Patriots will need to find somebody else to fill Williams’ former starting spot. The candidates are as follows, as a look at our up-to-date depth chart shows:
Interior defensive line (5): Christian Barmore (90), Khyiris Tonga (95 | FB), Cory Durden (94), Joshua Farmer (92), Eric Gregory (55)
Barmore, obviously, will not be going anywhere; he is as impactful a player as Williams even though his own statistics do not jump off the page either. The top candidate to join him in the starting lineup moving forward is Khyiris Tonga, who has the third most D-line snaps on the team on his résumé, with Cory Durden taking over some of Williams’ passing-down responsibilities.
Joshua Farmer and Eric Gregory, meanwhile, will likely remain depth and emergency options behind the new top three.
New source of pass rush needed
Not counting the Patriots’ win over the Jets, during which he was limited to just eight defensive snaps, Williams is ranked third on the team’s roster in quarterback pressures so far this season. Besides registering 3.5 sacks — third on the team behind K’Lavon Chaisson and Harold Landry — he also has five hits and 26 hurries to his name.
Replacing that kind of production will be challenging, and not a one-man job. The aforementioned Tonga and Durden will be responsible for doing so, as will be Christian Barmore (who notched his first sack of the season versus New York and stands at 34 total quarterback disruptions).
However, a lot of the pressure will be on the edge as well. So far, Chaisson and Landry have performed well, but the team has been missing a consistent third presence. Elijah Ponder has looked good in spurts, including versus the Jets, while Anfernee Jennings mostly remains an early-down player.
The hope is that fifth-round rookie Brady Swinson will add another piece to the puzzle after he was signed from the practice squad to the 53-man roster to take Williams’ spot.
Salary cap impact
Williams will continue receiving regular paychecks from the Patriots while on injured reserve; his $333,333.33 per game base salary remains intact even though he is sidelined for at least four contests. What will be impacted, though, is his active roster bonuses: he will miss out on at least $400,000, with an additional $100,000 subtracted for every other game missed beyond those four.
For the Patriots, this does not impact their salary cap this season. However, they will receive an appropriate credit on their 2026 cap.
Bradyn Swinson, meanwhile, will increase his salary significantly. While he received $13,000 per week on the practice squad, he is now making $46,666.67 for every game on the 53-man roster — a difference of $33,666.67 that will be subtracted from New England’s current salary cap.
