The last of the early-morning 2026 kickoffs happens today, with the Patriots playing the Lions in Germany. Unlike the others, which were televised by NFL Network, the Week 10 European game will be carried by Fox.
That gives Fox three windows in one day, with the morning game followed by the usual 1:00 p.m. ET window and the every-other-week 4:25 p.m. ET window.
Most of the country will see Vikings-Packers, featuring the return of Kirk Cousins, on Fox at 1:00 p.m. ET. The only Fox game at 4:25 p.m. ET will be 49ers at Cowboys.
With the Fox pregame show starting at 9:00 a.m. ET, it gives Fox more than 10 hours of continuous NFL broadcasting on Sunday. And with five of the six teams having winning records (and the sixth being the Cowboys), the numbers should start large and keep growing — culminating in a very large audience for the late-afternoon window, which has become the biggest of the NFL week.
A controversy arose after the NFL trade deadline when the Broncos demanded to change the terms of their trade with the Chargers after linebacker Daiyan Henley’s physical. But Henley wasn’t the only traded player whose physical raised concerns.
The Lions also told the Jets they wanted to change the terms of their trade for safety Andre Cisco after concerns about his physical. But unlike the Chargers, the Jets agreed to it, and the Lions ultimately sent the Jets a 2029 sixth-round pick for Cisco after initially agreeing to give up a 2028 sixth-round pick.
Tom Pelissero reports that the modified terms were based on medical concerns. There’s no word on what those concerns were, but Lions coach Dan Campbell said the plan is for Cisco to play on Sunday against the Patriots.
The Jets went along with the Lions’ request, and in the scheme of things the difference between a 2028 sixth-round pick and a 2029 sixth-round pick is minor. Still, it points to an inherent flaw in the NFL’s trade rules: The team acquiring a player has the ability to go back on the trade, or negotiate better terms, after the trade deadline. That puts the team trading the player in a difficult position: After you’ve already told a player you’re trading him, and told another player you’re signing him or bringing him up from the practice squad to take his place, you don’t want to go back on that. So if the team you’re trading with tells you, “We didn’t like his physical, so we’ll back out of the trade unless you take less compensation,” you may feel you have no choice but to accept.
The NFL could resolve that by not allowing trades to be renegotiated after the deadline: Either the player passes the physical and the trade goes through, or the player fails the physical and the trade does not go through. No more half measures like, “We failed him on his physical, but we’ll pass the physical if you agree to take a lesser draft pick for him.”
Another solution could be that physicals for traded players are conducted by an independent, league-appointed doctor, rather than the team’s medical staff. If that doctor says the player passes the physical, the team trading for the player can’t back out.
The Jets and Chargers had different reactions to their trade partners asking to renegotiate the trades, but the situation both teams were faced with highlights potential problems that can arise with the NFL allowing teams to change the terms of trades after the trade deadline.
Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson’s absence from the lineup will stretch through at least Week 15.
The Patriots placed Henderson on injured reserve Saturday as he continues to deal with a neurological issue that kept him out of the team’s last two games. Henderson was ruled out for this Sunday ahead of the team’s trip to Germany to face the Lions.
Rhamondre Stevenson is listed as questionable for that matchup with a knee injury, which leaves Corey Kiner and Lan Larison as the healthy running backs on New England’s roster.
In addition to the Henderson move, the Patriots activated fullback Reggie Gilliam and guard Greg Van Roten from injured reserve. They also elevated guard Andrew Rupcich from injured reserve. Van Roten and Rupcich help fill out a position group that will be missing Ben Brown against the Lions. Walter Rouse is listed as questionable due to a concussion as well.
The Lions elevated linebacker Owen Pappoe from the practice squad to the game-day roster, the team announced Saturday.
The Lions play the Patriots in Germany on Sunday.
Pappoe, 26, signed with the Lions’ practice squad on Nov. 3 after injuries to Jimmy Rolder and Jack Campbell.
A third-round pick of the Cardinals in 2023, Pappoe played for the Titans against the Eagles on Sept. 20. He played 19 special teams snaps in his only action of this season.
He likely will play a special teams role for the Lions on Sunday.
In his career, Pappoe has played 49 games with two starts. He has seen action on 341 defensive snaps and 964 special teams snaps.
For his career, Lions quarterback Jared Goff has a record of 101-67-1 as a starter. That’s a 59.7-percent win rate.
Against the Patriots, Goff is 1-3. That’s a 25-percent win rate.
In those four games, Goff has two touchdown passes and five interceptions.
Sunday’s game in Germany will be the first one against the Patriots with a coach other than Bill Belichick. Goff has never faced current Patriots coach Mike Vrabel; during Goff’s time as a starter with the Rams and Lions and Vrabel’s tenure with the Titans, their two teams never crossed paths.
Goff’s first loss to New England came in 2016, in his third career start. The Patriots won, 26-10. Two years later, New England beat Goff and the Rams in the Super Bowl, 13-3.
In 2020, Goff and the Rams beat the Patriots, 24-3. In 2022, the Patriots beat Goff and the Lions, 29-0.
Sunday’s game is consequential for both teams. The 6-2 Lions are caught in a cluster of four NFC North teams that all have six or more wins. The Patriots, at 5-4, are fading in the AFC East race and could be scrambling to secure a wild-card spot.
