The New England Patriots survived their low-scoring playoff debut against the visiting Los Angeles Chargers, celebrating a 16-9 victory to set up a divisional round meeting with the Houston Texans this coming Sunday. Entering that game, however, there is some uncertainty about one of the Patriots’ most important players.
With that said, let’s take a look at the injury situation after rewatching the wild card win over Los Angeles.
Patriots injury analysis: Wild card round
CB Carlton Davis III: When the Patriots came out of the two-minute warning
in the second quarter, Davis was not in his usual position at outside cornerback. Instead, he was in the blue medical tent and shortly thereafter departed for the locker room. Announced as questionable to return with a toe injury, he ended up missing five defensive snaps before returning to start the second half. Davis did not show any obvious signs of discomfort before his exit, so it is unclear when exactly he injured his toe.
CB Christian Gonzalez: Breaking up a Justin Herbert pass attempt intended for Quentin Johnston, Gonzalez collided with the wide receiver on his way to the ground and was slow to get up afterwards. He did remain in the game for the next snap — another incompletion to set up a punt — but headed into the medical tent afterwards. From there, the Pro Bowl defender left the field for the locker room and was later announced as questionable to return with a head injury. He never came back out and shortly before the game ended was officially downgraded to out.
What this means for the Patriots
While Carlton Davis managed to return to the game and finish without any visible limitations, Christian Gonzalez is a massive question mark. As head coach Mike Vrabel noted on Monday, the Pro Bowler is in the league’s concussion protocol, and there is no timeline yet for his return.
Arguably New England’s best player on this side of the ball, Gonzalez missing any time in the lead-up to Sunday’s game, let alone the contest itself, would be a blow to the team’s defense. While Houston’s offense is not in the upper echelon in terms of productivity and scoring potential, it features some high-end receiving talent led by wide receivers Nico Collins and Christian Kirk.
Having Gonzalez available against that pair and the rest of Houston’s defense would be a massive plus. For now, however, uncertainty reigns.
Wednesday will mark the first key date in that regard, and when it comes to finding out which other Patriots are nursing injuries or illness after the wild card round. The team will hold its first practice of the week that afternoon, with the initial injury report set to come out later in the day.
The Patriots will host the Texans at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, Jan. 18 at 3 p.m. ET.
