{"id":41194,"date":"2026-01-07T23:15:36","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T23:15:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=41194"},"modified":"2026-01-07T23:15:36","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T23:15:36","slug":"breaking-patriots-get-concerning-update-on-locker-room-health-before-playoffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=41194","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING : Patriots Get Concerning Update on Locker Room Health Before Playoffs"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2251893985-e1767824341828.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2251893985-e1767824341828.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2251893985-e1767824341828.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2251893985-e1767824341828.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Patriots Get Concerning Update on Locker Room Health Before Playoffs\" width=\"780\" height=\"437\" \/><\/figure>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The stage is set for an epic battle between AFC heavyweights during Wild Card Weekend, with the upstart New England Patriots set to host Justin Herbert\u2018s Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>The Patriots will head into this matchup against John Harbaugh\u2019s squad, with head coach Mike Vrabel potentially winning another NFL Coach of the Year award and up-and-coming quarterback Drake Maye potentially being named NFL MVP in February. New England has won three straight coming into the NFL playoffs and will be a tough out, as they are firing on all cylinders with Maye under center.<\/p>\n<p>However, the team got an unsettling update about a few of its players on Wednesday, with only a few days left before kickoff against the visiting Chargers.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Patriots Get Brutal Update Ahead of Playoff Clash With Chargers<\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_5699804\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2253066858_7d7e5c-e1767824427821.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all\" alt=\"Patriots Get Concerning Update on Locker Room Health Before Playoffs\" width=\"780\" height=\"440\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5699804\" data-lazy-load=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5699804\">GettyHead coach Mike Vrabel of the New England Patriots<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>On Wednesday, Vrabel spoke to the media. When asked about offensive tackle Morgan Moses admitted that the 34-year-old is among the players on the Patriots who are dealing with an illness.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGreat veteran presence,\u201d Vrabel said of Moses. \u201cHe\u2019s played well; it hasn\u2019t just been a presence. He\u2019s protected the quarterback, and he\u2019s been out there. We\u2019ve got some guys sick today, and Morgan will be in that group of guys that are sick. So, he won\u2019t be getting the physical reps, but just everything that we\u2019ve wanted him to be and needed him to be as far as changing over some personnel and adding him. So, it\u2019s been fun to watch that group gel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Later in the press conference, Vrabel was asked what other players on the team are also sick, along with Moses.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c[Garrett] Bradbury, Anfernee Jennings, Vederian Lowe,\u201d Vrabel said.<\/p>\n<p>Alex Barth of 98.5 The Sports Hub made an interesting observation during Wednesday\u2019s practice, as he noticed that tight end Hunter Henry and nose tackle Khyiris Tonga weren\u2019t on the field.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">As Mike Vrabel let us know earlier, Morgan Moses, Vederian Lowe, Garrett Bradbury, and Anfernee Jennings are not at Patriots practice dealing with an illness. <\/p>\n<p>Hunter Henry and Khyiris Tonga also weren\u2019t spotted. Jared Wilson is back in a red non-contact jersey. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wU8IMrpmQz\">pic.twitter.com\/wU8IMrpmQz<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Alex Barth (@RealAlexBarth) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RealAlexBarth\/status\/2008987415046934889?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 7, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Obviously, this is not good news for the Patriots moving forward. However, the team does have a few more days to get back to form from a health perspective, but this is a concern for the 14-win New England squad.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Mike Vrabel on Challenge of Facing Justin Herbert<\/h2>\n<div id=\"attachment_5699791\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2253737412-e1767823957644.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all\" alt=\"Patriots Get Concerning Update on Locker Room Health Before Playoffs\" width=\"780\" height=\"438\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5699791\" data-lazy-load=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5699791\">GettyJustin Herbert #10 of the Los Angeles Chargers<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Ahead of the playoff showdown with the Chargers, Vrabel spoke highly of Herbert, who he knows will be difficult to contain on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA lot. He\u2019s got toughness, great arm talent, great athletic ability,\u201d Vrabel said of Herbert. \u201cHe\u2019s under duress and it doesn\u2019t really affect him. You don\u2019t see him get frustrated. A lot of respect for him as a person, and obviously as a player. He\u2019s lived up to everything that they thought he\u2019d be as a franchise quarterback, and he\u2019s really just one of the best quarterbacks in the league.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vrabel also talked about Maye and the expectations he has for the MVP candidate heading into his first playoff game in the NFL.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI would hope that he would lead as our quarterback every single week,\u201d Vrabel said of Maye. \u201cThis is the next week. It\u2019s an important week. I think just the command that he has in the huddle. In practice, you see communication with guys off on the side, when maybe the defense is working. I see things during the game where he\u2019s trying to get guys on the same page and communicate to them and that relationship there. So, I think he\u2019s continuing to work at it. Again, everybody\u2019s trying to become a little better leader.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel makes some concerning comments about his players ahead of Wild Card Weekend.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":41195,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41194","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-new-england-patriots"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>BREAKING : Patriots Get Concerning Update on Locker Room Health Before Playoffs - Breaking News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=41194\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BREAKING : Patriots Get Concerning Update on Locker Room Health Before Playoffs - 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