The New England Patriots will be without one of their starting offensive linemen when they take the field Sunday in London.
On Thursday, the Patriots downgraded left take Vederian Lowe to out for the Week 6 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The 25-year-old tackle had missed the past two practices with an ankle injury.
The timing of the announcement coincides with the Patriots flying out to London Thursday evening. The move suggests that Lowe did not make the trip. NFL teams are required to downgrade players to out whenever they do not travel with the team.
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Lowe has been sidelined since suffering an ankle injury during the Patriots’ Week 6 loss to the Houston Texans. The tackle underwent an MRI to examine the injury Monday, Jerod Mayo said.
According to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Lowe suffered a sprained ankle and is expected to return in the “near future.”
After the departure of Chuks Okorafor, Lowe emerged as the Patriots’ top option at left tackle. Last week, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt had high praise for Lowe‘s pass blocking skills on the quarterback’s blindside.
“I feel strong about them. I think Vederian is playing at a high level,” Van Pelt said. “He’s probably our best pass blocker on that edge. Did a really good job. I thought protection was better as the game (against Miami) went on.”
With Lowe out, the Patriots will once again need to shuffle their offensive line to field a proper starting five.
Demontrey Jacobs could move to Lowe‘s left tackle spot. Mike Onwenu, who had recently bumped inside to guard, is a candidate to return to right tackle. Onwenu told reporters Thursday that he’d been practicing at both positions.
