LIVE: Deatrich Wise inactive for the Patriots

FOXBORO – The Patriots will need some help from their pass rush on Sunday.

Deatrich Wise is inactive after dealing with an ankle injury all week. The second-year pass rusher was the only Patriots player limited and listed as questionable to Friday.

This is a blow to the Patriots defensive front. Wise has been the team’s second-best pass rusher in 2018 behind Trey Flowers. The defensive end finished second on the Patriots in sacks (4.5) and quarterback hits [...]

FOXBORO – The Patriots will need some help from their pass rush on Sunday.

Deatrich Wise is inactive after dealing with an ankle injury all week. The second-year pass rusher was the only Patriots player limited and listed as questionable to Friday.

This is a blow to the Patriots defensive front. Wise has been the team’s second-best pass rusher in 2018 behind Trey Flowers. The defensive end finished second on the Patriots in sacks (4.5) and quarterback hits (16). He played in all 16 games in 2018. This will be the first missed game of his NFL career. With Wise out, the Pats will rely on Adrian Clayborn and Derek Rivers to help fill the void.

Clayborn’s active after being a healthy scratch in the final two games in Week 16 and 17. The veteran defensive end finished with 2.5 sacks this season. Rivers appeared in just six of 16 games this season. He made his first-career sack in Week 17 against the New York Jets.

Also inactive for the Patriots is Keionta Davis, Stephen Anderson, James Ferentz, Ufomba Kamalu, Obi Melifonwu and Duke Dawson. All six players are healthy scratches.

With Anderson out, the Patriots will play with two tight ends – Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen.

Welcome to Gillette Stadium

Welcome to Gillette Stadium where the Patriots will take on the Los Angeles Chargers in Sunday’s AFC divisional matchup. The winner of this game will travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs in the AFC Championship next Sunday, Jan. 20, at 6:40 p.m.

There are plenty of storylines in this Patriots-Chargers matchup.

Los Angeles hasn’t lost outside of Los Angeles this season. Their only ‘road’ loss came in LA against the Rams. Meanwhile, the Patriots haven’t lost at home inside Gillette Stadium this season. One of those streaks will come to an end.

On a positive note, Tom Brady is healthy. According to the NFL Network, Brady was dealing with a sprained MCL this season, but the knee is healed for the playoff run. Brady suffered the injury while trying to catch a pass in Week 10 in Tennessee. He spent several weeks on the injury report with a knee injury.

Sunday’s game could also be the last time Rob Gronkowski plays inside Gillette Stadium. After contemplating retirement last year, Gronk had one of his worst statistical seasons of his career (47 catches for 682 yards and three touchdowns) in 2018. According to the NFL Network, people around the 29-yer-old expect him to retire. That shouldn’t be a shock to anyone who’s seen the future Hall of Fame tight end play this season.

This playoff run will also mark the end of Brian Flores’ brief run as the Patriots defacto defensive coordinator. Flores reportedly will take the Miami Dolphins head-coaching position when the Patriots season is over. This marks the second season in a row that the Pats lose their defensive signal caller after Matt Patricia left to coach the Detroit Lions last offseason.

One interesting replacement idea is Greg Schiano. A friend of Bill Belichick, Schiano just left Ohio State, where he served as the defensive coordinator. He’s the former coach at Rutgers, where he coached several Patriots draft picks like Devin McCourty and Duron Harmon. Schiano was also the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for two seasons in 2012 and 2013.

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