When Sony Michel was activated from the injured reserve on Saturday, many thought he would play Sunday as opposed to the Houston Texans.
no.
Michel inactive in the defeat of the New England Patriots at NRG Stadium. He had suffered an injury on a quadruple motorcycle suffered in Week 3, but designated to return on November 5. At that moment, the stopwatch began to rotate in its 21-day window. to be activated.
On Wednesday, Belichick said the Patriots had to turn against Michel or else they would lose the window. The head coach went on to say that Michel was not in a position to play, so he remained inactive in front of Houston.
The problem, however, is that Belichick’s timing is incorrect.
It’s not a small mistake either. The Patriots had to make transparent spaces over the weekend, and offensive lineman Hjalte Froholdt and defensive lineman Derek Rivers were eliminated accordingly.
If the Patriots had waited to turn against Michel, they would not have needed to erase a roster spot as Rex Burkhead suffered an injury that ended the season against the Texans. Obviously, they didn’t know Burkhead would end up injured, but waiting with Michel would have allowed them to give up Froholdt or Rivers.
Instead, they lost a deep offensive lineman and a defensive lineman who rushes into the passes, all so Michel can be activated early and not despite the whole game against Houston.