The defending Super Bowl champions are entering the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season and are aiming to capture home field advantage Sunday versus the New York Jets, but it seems like they will do that without their starters.
In a press conference Monday, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick spoke about the possibility of not playing his starters for the last two games of the 2015 regular season.
New England has dealt with a number of injuries to key players this 2015 including the likes of running backs Dion Lewis and LeGarrette Blount, wide receivers Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola, tight end Rob Gronkowski, linebacker Dont'a Hightower, and safety Patrick Chung.
Some of these injured players, like Lewis and Blount, are even sidelined for the remainder of the season due to the injuries they sustained.
This might be the reason why Belichick is thinking of not playing his starters to keep them healthy when it is time for the playoffs.
"We do the best we can to manage all those things (nagging injuries, more serious injuries and players coming back to action)," Belichik said Monday, according to Comcast Sportsnet New England.
"They're all somewhat of a consideration. We just gotta try to balance it," the 63-year-old coach added.
Gronkowski already returned to action, while Amendola may come back this season with his knee injury not that severe, according to reports.
But still, Belichick would not want to risk another key player especially on offense which is led by franchise quarterback Tom Brady.
The Patriots would want to enter the playoffs with the best cast they can have to make another run for the Super Bowl.
Currently, the Pats are leading the American Football Conference (AFC) East with a 12–2 record and following their road game versus the Jets this Sunday, are closing the season against the Miami Dolphins on Jan. 3, 2016.
