Several New England Patriots in Jeopardy of Missing Season Opener at Seattle Seahawks

It’s almost time for (real) football again.

The 2026 regular season will begin in spectacular fashion, as the New England Patriots travel to take on the Seattle Seahawks in a Super Bowl LX rematch to kick off the year. 

In an unfortunate turn of events for New England, however, it doesn’t appear that all of their key contributors will be available when they commence their campaign. Sunday evening’s inaugural injury report of the new league year spells trouble for some, with on-and-off-field circumstances potentially leaving the Patriots shorthanded in one of the most challenging matchups of the fall. 

Here’s who is in jeopardy of missing the regular season opener in Seattle:

The most unlikely candidate to play from Sunday’s injury report is second-year running back TreVeyon Henderson, who last practiced on August 24. Henderson exited that practice session with an ankle injury and has yet to see the field since, missing the last three days New England suited up. 

Henderson showed great promise as a rookie in 2025. His 1,132 scrimmage yards and 10 total touchdowns made him just the third rookie in Patriots’ history to hit both marks (joining Robert Edwards in 1998 and Curtis Martin in 1995). A threat to break the game open in a moment’s notice, Henderson’s athleticism was on full display with 361 yards gained on “breakaway runs.” 

His availability, or lack thereof, has yet to be confirmed. But if the speedster can’t lace up the cleats on Wednesday night, much of the backfield workload will likely fall on Rhamondre Stevenson’s shoulders. Spelling Stevenson would be the newly acquired Corey Kiner, or practice squad members Hassan Haskins and Lan Larison. Of the two, Haskins is the more probable substitute; Larison spent Sunday’s practice working with the scout team offense.

New England would ideally lean heavily on the rushing attack to set up play-action and one-on-one opportunities downfield against an aggressive and uber-talented Seahawks’ secondary, but that will be a tall task with one-half of their two-headed monster at running back missing.

Ben Brown was the Patriots’ top backup along the interior of the offensive line in 2025 with snaps at guard and center. He received a contract extension early in the offseason and was firmly in the running to assume that role at the start of the 2026 season. 

The outlook for Brown changed when he suffered an ankle/knee injury in the first quarter of the preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts that’s kept him on the sidelines since. He was briefly released after cutdown day to make room for waiver claims, but has yet to return to practice. 

In the wake of Brown’s injury, New England signed veteran guard Greg Van Roten to man the top backup spot. Van Roten was a full-time starter in each of the last three seasons with the New York Giants (2024-25) and Las Vegas Raiders (2023), and could supplant Brown as the first off the bench. 

Still, Brown is a trusted contributor with previous experience in the system, and will be able to solely focus on reps at center when he returns. But that won’t be on Wednesday night. 

A somewhat surprising “did not participate” from Sunday’s injury report was defensive tackle Christian Barmore (knee), but there may not be too much cause for concern for his availability.

The linchpin of the Patriots’ interior defensive line over the last five seasons previously missed all-but four games in the 2024 season due to blood clots, and was load-managed throughout the entirety of the 2025 season to ensure his continued health. That meant regularly missing practices in order to stay ready for game days and is the most likely cause for his absence on Sunday.

In 2025, Barmore suited up in all 21 of New England’s regular season and playoff games and recorded 39 tackles, three sacks, and ranked inside the top-10 for NFL interior defensive linemen with 45 quarterback hurries (third), 10 quarterback hits (sixth), and 58 total pressures (eighth). Paired with Milton Williams, the duo formed one of the greatest strengths on the Patriots’ roster; New England hailed the only interior duo in the league featuring two rushers with a top-10 pressure rate.

Barmore’s offseason development plan from the Patriots’ coaching staff has been focused on improving snap-to-snap consistency. Hopefully, rest days like Sunday will help him achieve that and propel New England’s defensive line to new heights.

Amidst lengthy and seemingly stagnant contract negotiations, star cornerback Christian Gonzalez has been non-committal when asked about his game day availability throughout the week. When asked if he plans on playing during his conversation with the media on Saturday, Gonzalez maintained:

“I’m focused on today, right now, this practice.”

That’s been the most consistent rhetoric from Gonzalez over the course of the past week, who responded with a short, “I don’t know,” when questions arose about the likelihood of signing a new contract prior to the opener. On Thursday, Gonzalez faced a similar line of questioning and added: “I’m still frustrated. Like I said a week ago, I’ve got stuff to do. I’m focused on today, and this practice and doing what I’ve got to do.”

As Week 1 quickly approaches, Gonzalez is now on the wrong-end of a double-edged sword. If he plays, his effort and performance will be judged under a microscope, with justification for any failures pointing toward his contract negotiations. If he doesn’t, he’ll face criticism for a pattern of missed time (17 missed games in three years) and altering the trajectory of the Patriots’ lofty aspirations.

At this point, it seems unlikely that the two sides will come together before kickoff on Wednesday night. And if Gonzalez isn’t on the field, there will be a massive hole in the New England secondary that will likely be filled by Charles Woods. The latter doesn’t inspire much confidence against Jaxon Smith-Njigba & Co.

Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.

The Patriots are confirmed to be without the services of edge rusher Harold Landry III, safety/special teamer Brenden Schooler, linebacker Khalil Jacobs, and offensive tackle Marcus Bryant on Wednesday night. 

Landry begins the regular season on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list while recovering from offseason surgery. He was New England’s leading pass rusher through the first six weeks of last season before suffering a knee injury that slowed his production and forced him to miss time late in the year. Prior to his injury, Landry recorded 22 pressures and 6 sacks in the first month-plus, but was only able to generate 27 pressures and 2.5 sacks from Week 7 through Super Bowl LX. 

Schooler was not present for training camp or the preseason and begins the regular season on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) list. His injury and the severity of it has not been confirmed, but his absence will be felt on a special teams unit that only returns four contributors from 2025. 

Jacobs was a standout through training camp and the first two preseason games before suffering an injury that landed him on injured reserve to begin the season. He originally signed as an undrafted free agent (UDFA) following the 2026 NFL Draft and projects to be one of the top rotational off-ball linebackers when healthy and active. 

Bryant, a seventh-round pick in 2025, continued his upward developmental trajectory through the preseason and was in the running to assume swing tackle duties along the Patriots’ offensive line. An ankle injury five snaps into the contest against the Philadelphia Eagles landed him on injured reserve for at least the first four weeks of the regular season, and led to the addition of Walter Rouse on cutdown day. 

New England is set to begin the 2026 regular season with one of their most challenging litmus tests of the fall in Seattle. They’ll be doing so without the services of some key contributors, and others are also in jeopardy of missing time — yet another obstacle to overcome in their quest for repeat success.

How do you think the Patriots will fare against the Seahawks if the players on their injury report are unable to participate? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and join the conversation on Patriots Roundtable.

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