FOXBORO — Patriots left tackle Will Campbell and defensive tackle Milton Williams both walked through the locker room this week without the aid of a boot or brace, seemingly positive signs for their respective returns from injured reserve.
Williams suffered a high ankle sprain last month in a win over the Jets, while Campbell reportedly has a significant MCL sprain that caused to him to be carted off the field in Cincinnati on Nov. 23. Patriots coach Mike Vrabel provided an update on both players Friday and confirmed they should play again this season.
“We’ll get them back. We have a plan for each guy,” Vrabel said. “And again, I appreciate them being good with the plan that we have, talking about being in the meetings, then getting out of meetings early, going to rehab so that there’s some timing and we’re not overloading the training room. And then usually a week before they can start practicing, we’ll get them into meetings full-time, kind of go from there and see.
“And whether that’s at three weeks or that’s at five or six weeks, it’s all different. But that’s kind of how we plan it out with players that are on injured reserve.”
Williams can return to the field as soon as Dec. 28 for a road game against the Jets. Campbell must remain on IR until the season finale, a home kickoff versus Miami on Jan. 4.