Patriots at Bills Inactives: Jakobi Meyers, Jon Jones IN; Who’s OUT?

The New England Patriots are set for their Week 18 matchup with the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium.

With just under an hour until the 1 p.m. ET kickoff on, the Patriots and Bills have released their lists of inactives:

PATRIOTS INACTIVES:

TE Jonnu Smith

CB Jalen Mills

DB Shaun Wade

DT Sam Roberts

S Joshuah Bledsoe

RB Kevin Harris

S Brenden Schooler

What it means for New England:

Mills’ absence places additional pressure on fellow cornerbacks Jonathan Jones (also ‘questionable’ with a chest injury) and rookie Marcus Jones, who was recently cleared from concussion protocol. The pair of Joneses face a formidable challenge in attempting to contain Bills’ wideouts Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis on the perimeter. As a result, newly-acquired Tae Hayes stands to inherit an increased workload on Sunday.

Smith will be sidelined for the second-straight week, as he remains in concussion protocol. Having also missed the team’s Week 17 contest against Miami, veteran tight end Matt Sokol was elevated from the practice squad and played 10 offensive snaps as the Pats second option behind starter Hunter Henry. Sokol will assume the same role against the Bills in Week 18.

With rookie Brenden Schooler out due to a hip injury, linebacker Calvin Munson was elevated from the scout team, adding depth to New England’s special teams coverage units against Buffalo.

BILLS INACTIVES:

S Jared Mayden

CB Christian Benford

LB Baylon Spector

G Ike Boettger

T Justin Murray

TE Tommy Sweeney

What it means for Buffalo:

The Bills enter Sunday’s matchup as healthy on the active roster as they have been all season. Buffalo did not list any player with a designation on Friday’s injury and practice participation report. As a result, their inactives are healthy scratches.

The Bills also did make a roster elevation for their regular-season finale, promoting receiver John Brown from their practice squad. The 32-year-old recently returned to Buffalo after having previously spent 2019-2020 with the team as one of its most productive receivers.

Follow Mike D’Abate on Twitter @mdabateNFL and Listen/Subscribe to his daily podcast: Locked On Patriots

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