Patriots WR Danny Amendola Practices, to Play vs. Broncos?

Danny Amendola’s knee injury is not serious, and he was present at Patriots’ practice on Wednesday.

Injuries have been an issue for the Patriots all season long, especially on the offensive side of the ball. With Julian Edelman not set to return anytime soon after breaking his foot, Danny Amendola has become one of the most important players on the Patriots’ offense.

In the absence of Edelman, the Patriots are relying on Amendola to not only fill in as the slot receiver, but be the Patriots’ primary target in the short passing game. Tom Brady does a majority of his damage using the short passing game, and Amendola’s natural ability to get open underneath the coverage is at the utmost importance to the Patriots right now.

Amendola missed most of the second half against the Bills on Monday night after suffering a knee injury. Luckily, the injury has only been diagnosed as a sprained knee, and Amendola is not expected to miss much more time.

In fact, just two days after the suffering the injury, Amendola is back at it, taking part in the Patriots’ walk-through practice on Wednesday, according to Mike Reiss of ESPN.com.

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It is encouraging to see Amendola back and at it right away, but it is important to note that this was not an actual practice. There is little physical activity done at a walk-through. It is much more of a mental practice for the team, and it does not necessarily mean that Amendola will be ready to suit up against the Broncos on Sunday.

It does however, show that the Patriots believe there is at least a chance that Amendola will be ready to go. If he had no chance of playing, wouldn’t they just sit him out of the entire week? They clearly wanted him to get those mental reps on Wednesday for a reason, and I imagine it had a lot to do with the prep for their tough upcoming match-up against the Broncos.

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The Patriots need Amendola on the field if they have any chance of consistently moving the ball down the field against the Broncos’ stellar defense. The Patriots’ league best defense should be able to keep them in the game regardless, but they stand much more of a chance against Denver if Brady can rely on Amendola in the short passing game.