Patriots All-Pro cornerback Christian Gonzalez looks closer to a return as the team prepares for a visit from Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers Sunday.
Gonzalez was a participant in Patriots practice for the first time since July 28th, when he sustained a hamstring injury in Patriots training camp.
Head coach Mike Vrabel confirmed he expected Gonzalez to do "some stuff" in practice this week, but wouldn't commit to a timeline for his return to game play.
"I guess if everybody is looking for somebody to blame --and I'm not --I'm trying to just get them back as soon as they can get back and make sure that they're staying engaged, and then we have to decide how long that's going to be. Is there short-term IR?" Vrabel said. "All these different things that come into it, but everybody wants to blame if it's not in some window that the doctor on Twitter suggests or recommends."