The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks have declared the following players inactive for Sunday Night Football.
Patriots inactives
CB Eric Rowe
RB Dion Lewis
DT Woodrow Hamilton
OT LaAdrian Waddle
LB Kyle Van Noy
RB D.J. Foster
TE Matt Lengel
There aren’t many surprises here, but there are some interesting takeaways.
No Rowe means that rookie CB Cyrus Jones is back in the line-up after being a scratch since his ejection against the Browns. Rowe had a rough outing against the Bills. Look for CB Logan Ryan to get the start.
Lewis shouldn’t be a surprise, although I wonder why the Patriots bothered to activate him this week if he wasn’t going to play; they didn’t have to make a decision until next week.
Hamilton appears to be behind DT Vincent Valentine in the depth chart, although the weak Seahawks offensive line makes me wonder how the Patriots are going to win at the line of scrimmage since Seattle relies heavily on the run.
Van Noy was a possible choice to replace Jamie Collins, but it would seem like LB Elandon Roberts and LB Barkevious Mingo get the inside lane for snaps on defense.
WR Chris Hogan will be active despite suffering a back injury on Friday, as will TE Martellus Bennett and WR Julian Edelman. DT Alan Branch is also active.
Seahawks inactives
WR Tanner McEvoy
RB Thomas Rawls
SS Tyvis Powell
OG Rees Odhiambo
DL Michael Bennett
OT Bradley Sowell
TE Luke Willson
Rawls, Bennett, and Sowell are all key starters. Rawls’ back-up Christine Michael suffered a hamstring injury on Friday, while Sowell’s back-up George Fant has started one game of football since eighth grade. Bennett is the best defensive lineman on the Seahawks, although ED Cliff Avril is extremely talented.