Drake Maye, Ja'Lynn Polk active for Patriots; Kyle Dugger to miss Sunday vs. Titans
BOSTON -- Drake Maye is officially active for the New England Patriots for Sunday's game against the Titans in Tennessee. The rookie quarterback cleared concussion protocol on Saturday and is set to start against the Titans.
Rookie receiver Ja'Lynn Polk is also returning from a concussion for Sunday's tilt, after he missed last week's win over the New York Jets. He has 10 receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown on 26 targets this season.
Fellow rookie receiver Javon Baker is active for the second straight week and will likely be New England's primary kickoff returner in Tennessee. Baker had one kickoff return for 17 yards in last week's win over the Jets.
Two Pats receivers healthy scratches amid trade rumors
With Polk returning to the mix and Baker active again, veteran K.J. Osborn and Tyquan Thornton are both healthy scratches for the Patriots on Sunday. Both players could be potentially moved ahead of Tuesday's NFL trade deadline.
Osborn and Thornton being inactive should open the door for Polk and Baker to play bigger roles in the offense on Sunday.
Safety Kyle Dugger is also among New England's inactives, as he's set to miss his second straight game with an ankle injury. But Dugger has also been mentioned in trade rumors, so we'll see if this plays out similar to the Josh Uche situation from last week. Uche was a healthy scratch against the Jets and was then traded to the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday.
Dugger, however, is dealing with an injury. He was limited all week in practice so maybe his ankle didn't respond well enough for him to be active on Sunday. The Patriots also signed Dugger to a five-year, $58 million contract in the offseason and named him a team captain, so trading away someone they consider part of their core on defense would send an odd message by the rebuilding Patriots.
Marte Mapu filled in for Dugger last week and is expected to do the same Sunday against the Titans.
Along the offensive line, left tackle Vederian Lowe is active for the Patriots after being listed as questionable because of ankle and shoulder issues. , but he's good to go, as is starting LG Michael Jordan (ankle), who was also questionable.
After Sunday's Patriots-Titans clash in Nashville, switch to TV38 after the game for full reaction and analysis on Patriots 5th Quarter!
