FOXBOROUGH, Mass. _ There was a time where it looked like the Patriots were extremely thin at wide receiver. In a flash, the outlook has changed drastically in New England.
On Tuesday, Demaryius Thomas was present at Patriots practice in a helmet, jersey and pads for the first time this offseason. This likely suggests that the veteran wide receiver has passed his physical and is off the physically unable to perform list. Thomas had previously missed all of OTAs, minicamp and the first 16 days of training camp due to an Achilles injury he suffered last December.
If that's the case, in a four-day span, the Patriots receiver depth looks completely different. Last Friday, Josh Gordon was reinstated and placed on the non-football injury list. On Monday, Julian Edelman returned to practice coming off the NFI list. Now 24 hours later, the Patriots get Thomas.
The 31-year-old caught 59 passes for 677 yards and five touchdowns last season with the Denver Broncos and Houston Texans. The five-time Pro Bowler adds more size to the Patriots as he stands 6-foot-3.
All of a sudden, the Patriots are working with Edelman, Thomas, N'Keal Harry, Jakobi Meyers, Phillip Dorsett and most likely, Gordon to start the season at receiver. Veteran Cameron Meredith is currently on the PUP list. Maurice Harris and Braxton Berrios have also had solid moments this summer.
The Patriots were missing Michael Bennett, Patrick Chung, Shilique Calhoun, Derek Rivers, Martez Ivey and Trent Harris at practice. Bennett, Chung and Ivey were new additions and it's unknown why they were missing.
It would be a surprise if any player who missed Tuesday's practice due to injury played against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday. Also expected not to play are Harris, Matt LaCosse, Stephen Anderson and Obi Melifonwu.
