New England Patriots
Robert Spillane was a limited participant during Thursday’s practice, but Harold Landry didn’t take the field.
Harold Landry didn’t practice on Thursday due to a knee injury. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
SAN FRANCISCO — While Drake Maye’s shoulder injury continues to look more and more like an afterthought, New England’s defense is looking a bit shakier just a few days away from Super Bowl LX.
In Thursday’s injury report from the Bay Area, Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane (ankle) was upgraded to “limited” in terms of his practice participation after missing Wednesday’s session at Stanford University.
However, fellow linebacker Harold Landry III was downgraded from “limited” to “did not participate” due to a lingering knee injury.
Maye (right shoulder) and defensive tackle Joshua Farmer (on injured reserve with a hamstring injury) were deemed full participants on Thursday, while offensive tackles Morgan Moses (rest) and Thayer Munford Jr. (knee) were limited along with Spillane.
Spillane’s status has been in question after missing most of New England’s AFC championship game against the Broncos on Jan. 25.
Losing Spillane for Super Bowl LX would be a major blow for New England, as the veteran linebacker and team captain has been a key cog in the Patriots’ stingy run defense.
“We manage these things,” Mike Vrabel said of Spillane’s injury Thursday morning. “I mean, everybody’s important to this defense. Everybody’s important to our team. Not just one guy. And again, Robert does mean a lot to us and has had a good year for us. So, we’ll just kind of see how it goes today.
“We still have time to work through things before the game. And then we’ll try to put together the game day roster we feel like gives us the best chance. Hopefully that includes Robert, but again, we have a few more practice days before we get there.”
Landry’s play has taken a hit due to his knee injury — slowing down significantly after opening the year with 3.5 sacks in his first two games of the year. He missed the final two games of the regular season, and was limited during playoff bouts against the Chargers and Texans. He did not play against the Broncos due to that knee injury.
But New England is not alone on the injury front, as Seattle Seahawks rookie safety Nick Emmanwori also missed practice after suffering an ankle injury on Wednesday.
The No. 35 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Emmanwori has emerged as an immediate contributor on one of the toughest defenses in the NFL — recording 81 tackles, 11 passes defensed, nine tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and an interception, while earning a finalist nod for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald did offer an update for Emmanwori during Thursday’s media availability,
“He’s going to do the walkthrough today, not sure how extensive, if at all, he’s going to practice. But he’s confident, we’ve got a great plan, fully expect him to play,” Macdonald told reporters. “He’s doing great and moving around. We’ve just got to make sure we handle it the right way. We’re probably going to be overly careful and over cautious at this point to make sure we’re rolling going into the weekend.”
Here are the injury reports for both the Patriots and Seahawks:
PATRIOTS
DID NOT PARTICIPATE
LB Harold Landry III – Knee
LIMITED PARTICIPATION
T Morgan Moses – Not Injury Related / Rest
T Thayer Munford Jr. – Knee
LB Robert Spillane – Ankle
FULL PARTICIPATION
QB Drake Maye – Right Shoulder
DT Joshua Farmer – Hamstring
SEATTLE SEAHAWKS
DID NOT PARTICIPATE
S Nick Emmanwori – Ankle
LIMITED PARTICIPATION
T Charles Cross – Foot
FB Robbie Ouzts – Neck
FULL PARTICIPATION
WR Jake Bobo – Hand
QB Sam Darnold – Oblique
LB Ernest Jones – Chest
T Josh Jones – Ankle, Knee
LB Demarcus Lawrence – Not Injury Related / Resting Player
S Julian Love – Shoulder
FB Brady Russell – Hand
TE Eric Saubert – Hamstring
LB Drake Thomas – Shoulder
WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba – Not Injury Related / Resting Player
DE Leonard Williams – Not Injury Related / Resting Player
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
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