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The New England Patriots have a very big question to answer right now: Is quarterback Mac Jones healthy enough to play moving forward? According to Greg A. Bedard of the Boston Sports Journal, Jones was carried by his teammates down the stairs to the locker room today after the Patriots’ game against the Baltimore Ravens. Per Bedard, Jones was heard screaming while in the process of entering the locker room. The photo Adam Richins took, shown below, gives us a look into the moment.
From photo Adam Richins https://t.co/CzQWi3Ub9G pic.twitter.com/m6VylshRs1
— Greg A. Bedard (@GregABedard) September 25, 2022
While Jones threw every single one of the Patriots’ 32 passes against the Ravens in Week 2, he sustained what clearly appears to be a very painful ankle injury. According to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, x-rays on his ankle came back negative. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the expectation is that Jones suffered a high ankle sprain, the same injury that put Green Bay Packers inside linebacker Krys Barnes on the injured reserve earlier this season. Schefter stated that Jones is to undergo an MRI tomorrow that should confirm or deny the high ankle sprain diagnosis.
If the Patriots don’t have Jones under center, the team will start Brian Hoyer against the Packers at Lambeau Field next Sunday. For his career, Hoyer has posted a 16-23 record and has only started one game for New England, despite the fact that he’s spent seven seasons with the team. In Week 4 of 2020, Hoyer threw 15-of-24 for 130 yards and an interception as the Patriots’ starter. Hoyer’s backup, should Jones miss action, will be fourth-round rookie Bailey Zappe via Western Kentucky.
According to DraftKings, the Packers have opened up as a 9.5-point favorite. That number may seem high, but Green Bay has already covered a line this high at Lambeau in 2022. They were also 9.5-point favorites against Chicago in Week 2, a game they ended up winning by 17 points.
The Packers are -360 moneyline favorites, which carries an implied probability that Green Bay wins 78 percent of the time. The total for the game sits at 42 points, which may be a bit high for a sputtering offense facing a backup quarterback. This season, Green Bay’s games have averaged 31 total points between the Packers and their opponents. Unders have hit in all three of the Packers’ games in 2022.
