Until this past week against the Ravens, the Patriots have been mostly fortunate on the injury front, unlike most teams across the league. Although they've lost some key starters, they've been placed on injured reserve and are expected to return for the playoffs, which is a much better scenario for a team in their position.
Because of that, a player like DT Milton Williams can return as soon as this week against the Jets, and according to Mike Vrabel, there's a good possibility that will happen.
The defensive tackle suffered an injury last month that landed him on IR, and he has now missed four games, meaning his return window can finally be opened this week. Vrabel intends on doing that ahead of their Week 17 matchup, and Williams' return couldn't be happening at a better time.
Mike Vrabel on Milton Williams, who will have his practice window from IR opened today.
— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) December 23, 2025
Williams could return as soon as Sunday’s game against the Jets. pic.twitter.com/AUy3x1RGpA
Mike Vrabel shares a good update regarding Milton Williams' injury status ahead of the Patriots' Week 17 matchup
The superstar defender has been sorely missed on the defensive line over the past five weeks, particularly in stopping the run, which had been one of the defense's most productive parts throughout their 10-game win streak.
That has changed a lot in Williams' absence, even more so since Christian Barmore has been playing through injury, too, and his return to the lineup as soon as this week will immediately put the defense back on the right track as they're inching closer to the playoffs.
Although their final two opponents, the Jets and Dolphins, aren't considered tough teams at this point in the year, they do have impressive running backs who could easily make it a much closer game than the Patriots would want it to be.
That was nearly the case just last week with Derrick Henry and the Ravens, who the Patriots are fortunate to have had shut down by John Harbaugh late in the fourth quarter. Otherwise, the game could have gotten away from them, and we wouldn't be talking about a big comeback victory.
With Breece Hall on the agenda for this upcoming game, Williams' return would be incredibly beneficial for the defense. But at the same time, there might be a reason to keep him sidelined for another week or two in order to have him at his healthiest for the playoffs.
It will certainly be something worth monitoring in the days leading pup to their trip to New York.