On Thursday, Patriots (7-2) wide receiver Kayshon Boutte missed his second consecutive practice with the same hamstring injury that knocked him out of his team’s Week 9 win against the Falcons (3-5).
According to Boutte, it’s not that serious. Here’s what he posted on his Discord server on Monday (that might be the most 2025 sentence I’ve ever written):
"Just got the MRI results back, it's only a grade 1 sprain so that's a good thing (praying emoji). Shouldn't be down too long but we working to get back. It's a possibility I play Sunday in Tampa depending how I'm feeling but if not then hopefully I'm good for the Jets on TNF. I'll keep y'all updated. Just know I'm working to get it stronger and come back better."
While the 23-year-old says there’s a chance he plays in Week 10 against Tampa Bay (6-2), his lack of participation in practice this week tells a different story.
As does head coach Mike Vrabel, who outright said on Monday that rookie Kyle Williams could be in store for an expanded role with Boutte sidelined.
“[Williams has] settled down,” said Vrabel. “He had to play a lot of different positions and there's a lot of moving parts. And Kayshon [Boutte] went down and Kyle's been learning a lot of different positions. I'm excited that he'll probably get an opportunity here, a little greater opportunity going forward.
“It's just a lot of different personnel groups and alignments. And so, I think he settled down and I think that he'll get an opportunity here moving forward. I think Kayshon’s going to be day-to-day, but I don't see him practicing early in the week. We'll see where that goes late in the week, but Kyle should be ready to go here for us.”
The rookie third round pick out of Washington State came into the season with high expectations as the 69th overall pick. And after showing some flashes of brilliance during training camp, he has mostly disappeared within the Patriots offense through nine games this season.
He has just 2 catches on 6 targets for 20 receiving yards and 0 touchdowns. And for those who thought the undersized speedster would have value in the run game on end-arounds, that hasn’t happened, either - just 1 rush attempt for a loss of 2 yards.
Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels was asked on Thursday at the podium what Williams has to do to have a larger impact on the offense over the next eight games as this team is likely headed towards a high seed in the postseason.
“I think Kyle’s doing a lot of really good things, you know?” said McDaniels. “He’s a young player who’s come in, and he’s - some of the guys that have been in front of him have really done a nice job, you know?
“So I think that’s part of the role of a young player who is trying to progress. You wait your turn, you get your opportunities, and then hopefully you make some plays and you continue to earn more. So, he practices hard every day. He’s out there everyday, which is an important part for a young player to develop. He knows what to do. He plays multiple spots. He knows how to function in multiple spots. And we’ll see if there’s more opportunities out here as we go forward.”
If you listen to Vrabel and McDaniels, it sounds like Williams is doing everything necessary behind the scenes to have an impact on Sundays.
Will that translate once the ball is kicked off?
New England is going to need all the help they can get, as Tampa Bay is by far and away the Patriots’ toughest test yet. They’re currently a 2.5-point road underdog, and sit on the moneyline at +125.
Tune in each and every Monday throughout the football season to Patriots Monday on WEEI. Head coach Mike Vrabel joins The Greg Hill Show at 6:30 a.m. ET, and quarterback Drake Maye joins WEEI Afternoons.