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It would appear that the Patriots are in better shape than initially feared.
According to Ian Rappoport, 2nd year defensive lineman Dominique Easley only has a hip pointer:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Meanwhile, sounds like <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Patriots?src=hash">#Patriots</a> dodged a bullet with DL Dominique Easley. He has a hip pointer, may just miss a week or two, I’m told.</p>— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/642468525785939968">September 11, 2015</a></blockquote>
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When Easely first went down, it looked like it could be something serious, especially given how gingerly he walked off the field and into the locker room. But if the reports are in fact correct, the injury isn't all that serious. A hip pointer is more or less a deep bruise which, while painful, heals pretty much on its own. From there it's just a matter of mobility and pain tolerance. So look for the Patriots to likely hold Easley out until after the Week 4 Bye, and then bring him back in time to face the Cowboys.
Definitely good news.