Two recently-suspended rookies have officially been thrust into the playoff-week circus between the New England Patriots and their AFC Divisional Playoff opponents, the New York Jets.
First-year linebacker Brandon Spikes was reinstated by the Patriots after serving a four-game NFL penalty for violation of the NFL's banned substances policy and took part in two days of full-pads practices during the club's bye week. Previously, he was not allowed to practice or be at the team facility during his ban.
Spikes did not appeal his suspension, which ensured he'd be able to play in the postseason after an initial NFL year that saw him make 36 tackles and intercept one pass in 12 games after his second-round selection from the University of Florida.
Still, he may have work to do to guarantee a role in the Patriots' third go- around with the Jets this season Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
"It looked like he hadn't practiced in four weeks with the team, so he's got a ways to go," New England head coach Bill Belichick said of Spikes. "Hopefully he'll be better this week than he was last week. He should be with the extra days of practice and just getting back into it, but we'll see how it goes."
Linebackers coach Matt Patricia said Spikes is working to "get himself back in the groove" and that anyone who misses four weeks of work faces an adjustment period.
"There's a progression he's going to work at, obviously, and we're just going to truck along like we normally do, working hard every day, trying to get better in each individual performance so that collectively, as a whole, we can get better," Patricia said.
Also coming back from a break is defensive lineman Brandon Deaderick, who was suspended for four days last week, but reinstated Friday night after the Patriots placed veteran end Mike Wright on injured reserve with a concussion.
The Boston Globe reported that Deaderick's suspension came after he was late for and/or missed several meetings. New England director of player personnel Nick Caserio said it remains to be seen if Deaderick got the intended message from the suspension.
"We'll find out," Caserio said. "He's here. We'll start practicing and we'll ask him to prepare for the game just like we ask any other player. If he's ready to play, then he'll be given his opportunity. So we'll see how it goes this week."
Deaderick was a seventh-round draft pick from the University of Alabama. He appeared in five games and made nine tackles, including two sacks.
The winner of Sunday's contest will advance to the AFC Championship Game. The teams played twice during the regular season, with the Jets winning the initial game in September, 28-14, before New England dominated the rematch by a 45-3 score at Gillette Stadium in December
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I think Spikes will have a big impact on this game
Let the Jets run up the middle with Tomlinson now.
