Mel

Mitchell

Mitchell was expected to contribute on special teams. New England could look to rookie Willie Andrews to help fill the void.

New England made a concerted effort to beef up special teams by signing Mitchell. He tore his biceps last week.

He should back up Jay Bellamy at strong safety.

Stallworth had been limited in practice on Wednesday. LT Matt Light missed practice with flu-like symptoms, special teamer Mel Mitchell didn’t practice with a biceps injury, and G Stephen Neal was limited with a shoulder injury.

Tom Brady (probable) and Rodney Harrison (probable) were the only other players listed on the injury report. Left tackle Matt Light returned to practice after sitting out Thursday with flu-like symptoms.

The Pats have just over two weeks to decide whether to activate Brown. They’d need to make a corresponding roster move to do so. Missing from Monday’s practice were S Eugene Wilson, S Mel Mitchell, and LB Eric Alexander.

It’s not clear if Brady was in the training room, if he wasn’t expected at practice until later, or if the Patriots are just playing games with the media. The media is only allowed to watch the first 30 minutes of practice, and it’s possible Brady didn’t appear until after they left. The Patriots might be more concerned with getting Brady 100% than this week’s run-throughs. Rodney Harrison and Mel Mitchell were also missing for the media portion of practice.