Patriots Week 2 Snap Count Analysis: Injuries Force Depth to Step Up

The New England Patriots suffered several injuries in their Week 2 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, and head coach Mike Vrabel summed it up perfectly postgame.

"Proud of everybody. A lot of guys stepped up," Vrabel said. "We had a lot of injuries, and we played a lot of guys that— some of these guys haven’t been here for, probably, around two weeks or so. And they played for us. So that’s a great thing that they were ready to go, but we have to get healthy and figure out who’s available next week for a huge challenge."

Those injuries led the Patriots to dive deeper into the depth than they might have hoped this earlier into the season. Let's take a look at how the snaps were divided up among the three phases, and some of the major takeaways from that.

Offensive Snaps:

OG Alijah Vera-Tucker (55, 100%), OT Will Campbell (55, 100%), QB Drake Maye (55, 100%), C Jared Wilson (55, 100%), OT Morgan Moses (51, 93%), TE Hunter Henry (50, 91%), OG Greg Van Roten (40, 73%), WR Mack Hollins (39, 71%), WR Romeo Doubs (37, 67%), RB TreVeyon Henderson (33, 60%), WR DeMario Douglas (26, 47%), FB Reggie Gilliam (20, 36%), RB Rhamondre Stevenson (20, 36%), OG Mike Onwenu (15, 27%), TE Cameron Latu (14, 25%), WR Kyle Williams (11, 20%), TE Eli Raridon (11, 20%), WR Efton Chism III (10, 18%), OT Caleb Lomu (4, 7%), RB Corey Kiner (4, 7%)

Sep 20, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) hands the ball off to running back Rhamondre Stevenson (38) in the first half against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Offensively, the biggest loss is that of Mike Onwenu. The starting right guard went down in the first half with an ankle injury and was replaced by Greg Van Roten. Eli Raridon also left the game with a thigh injury, giving Cameron Latu a bigger jump in offensive snaps.

But it still wasn't a very productive day for Kyle Williams, who remained stashed on the depth chart despite an injury to A.J. Brown. Instead, the Patriots went heavy on Mack Hollins' output and gave him the most snaps out of any receiver. Additionally, Caleb Lomu — the team's first round rookie — came in for his first offensive snaps of the season, replacing Morgan Moses on the final drive.

Defensive Snaps:

LB Robert Spillane (70, 100%), LB Christian Elliss (70, 100%), CB Christian Gonzalez (70, 100%), S Kevin Byard (70, 100%), CB Marcus Jones (69, 99%), CB Charles Woods (60, 86%), EDGE Elijah Ponder (54, 77%), EDGE Gabe Jacas (49, 70%), S Craig Woodson (46, 66%), DT Milton Williams (44, 63%), DT Christian Barmore (36, 51%), DT Cory Durden (34, 49%), S Jaylen Reed (28, 40%), DT Joshua Farmer (24, 34%), EDGE Dre'Mont Jones (18, 26%), EDGE Quintayvious Hutchins (16, 23%), DT DaQuan Jones (10, 14%), CB Channing Canada (2, 3%)

Sep 20, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jaylen Warren (30) runs the ball agains tNew England Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane (14) in teh second half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

All offseason, the talk was about how bad the Patriots are off the edge. That group was tested after Dre'Mont Jones went down with a shoulder injury. That opened up a lot of chances for the trio of Elijah Ponder, Gabe Jacas and Quintayvious Hutchins. All of them had larger roles in the win, including Ponder — who scored on a forced fumble late in the game.

Without Carlton Davis on the field, the Patriots were able to get a number of snaps from their backup cornerbacks. Karon Prunty uited up for his NFL debut, while Charles Woods got a lot of use as the team's third option. Channing Canada, mainly a special teamer, also got some run defensively. The secondary will be tested this week, especially after Craig Woodson and Dell Pettus both went down with injuries.

Special Teams Snaps:

TE Cameron Latu (21, 84%), LB Namdi Obiazor (20, 80%), S Jaylen Reed (18, 72%), LB Darius Muasau (16, 64%), CB Channing Canada (16, 64%), FB Reggie Gilliam (14, 56%), CB Karon Prunty (13, 52%), LB Erick Hunter (12, 48%), EDGE Gabe Jacas (12, 48%), CB Charles Woods (11, 44%), K Andy Borregales (10, 40%), LS Julian Ashby (9, 36%), P Mitch Wishnowsky (9, 36%), DT Cory Durden (9, 36%), EDGE Elijah Ponder (9, 36%), EDGE Quintayvious Hutchins (9, 36%), WR Efton Chism III (8, 32%), S Dell Pettus (8, 32%), CB Marcus Jones (8, 32%), C Ben Brown (5, 20%), OG Alijah Vera-Tucker (5, 20%), OT Will Campbell (5, 20%), OG Greg Van Roten (5, 20%), S Craig Woodson (5, 20%), OT Caleb Lomu (5, 20%), DT Milton Williams (4, 16%), DT Christinan Barmore (4, 16%), LB Robert Spillane (2, 8%), WR Mack Hollins (1, 4%), OG Mike Onwenu (1, 4%), WR Kyle Williams (1, 4%)

September 20, 2026; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots place kicker Andy Borregales (8) lines up his kick during the second half against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

For the second-straight week, the Patriots elevated Mitch Wishnowsky off of the practice squad to handle the punting. He, along with the kicker Andy Borregales and long snapper Julian Ashby, appear set in stone as the specialist trio for at least the next two weeks. We've also seen Latu, Namdi Obiazor and Jaylen Reed stick out as true core special teamers. Obiazor added three more tackles, bumping his total to six after two weeks.

Even though he didn't factor into the game plan offensively, the Patriots clearly like Williams as their top kick returner. He only got one opportunity, but for him to make an impact right now, it's looking like the return game is how it will happen.

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