Notebook: Start the clock on Malcolm Mitchell

Wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell made his first appearance of the season at the start of Wednesday’s practice, which means the Patriots now have a decision to make.


The team has 21 days to either activate him off injured reserve. If they don’t activate him within that window, New England will be forced to put him on injured reserve the rest of the season. The 24-year-old Mitchell, a 5-foot-11, 200-pounder who has been on the shelf all year because of knee issues, had 32 catches for 401 yards and four touchdowns as a rookie in 2016.

In addition, newcomer James Harrison was present at the start of practice. Missing were quarterback Tom Brady, running backs Rex Burkhead and Mike Gillislee and defensive lineman Alan Branch. Brady has been dogged on and off this year by an Achilles issue, while Burkhead and Branch have been dealing with knee injuries. And Gillislee was spotted after Sunday’s win over the Bills with ice on his knee.

Belichick tight-lipped about addition of Harrison

In his Wednesday morning press conference, Patriots coach Bill Belichick was asked multiple times and in a variety of ways about Tuesday’s addition of Harrison. He wasn’t biting.

The Patriots added the 39-year-old Harrison on Tuesday, days after he was cut loose by Pittsburgh. Asked to describe Harrison’s playing style, Belchick responded: “He's played outside linebacker for the Steelers. We'll see how it goes.”

“We’ll start working with him and see how it goes,” Belichick said.

Belichick did say that Harrison has had a “good” career. Asked if Harrison might be able to provide some inside information on the Steelers if New England was to face Harrison’s old team, Belichick shrugged.

“Well, we're playing the Jets this week. I don’t really know what that has to do with it,” he said. “Maybe I’m missing something. I don’t know.”

Harrison was once part of a Pro Bowl team that included Belichick as one of the coaches, but Belichick said the two didn’t really get a chance to connect. Was it important to get the chance to sit down and talk with Harrison before he agreed to a deal on Tuesday?

“It's always good to meet somebody,” replied the coach.

Allen returns for another Pats-Jets game

Brad Allen will serve as the referee for Sunday’s regular-season finale between the Patriots and Jets in Foxboro. This will be Allen’s fourth career game involving New England — interestingly enough, this will also mark his third Patriots-Jets game. New England is 3-0 when he officiates. For more on Allen’s work as an official, check out his page at Pro Football Reference.

Belichick backs Gillislee

We’ve written about it on a couple of occasions, but following last Sunday’s game where Gillislee made his first appearance in several weeks — after multiple healthy scratches — Dion Lewis praised the professionalism and work ethic of Gillislee, who has handled an up-and-down season “the right way.”

“Oh man, I’m so happy for him. He’s my locker mate. I love Mike,” Lewis said after Gillislee rushed for 28 yards and a touchdown against his old team. “He’s a great person. He handles things the right way. A lot better than a lot people would. I love that guy. He’s a great person and I’m happy for him.”

On Wednesday, Belichick seconded Lewis’ endorsement, saying Gillislee has been a true professional.

“Mike’s been great. Mike works really hard,” Belichick said. “In practice, sometimes when he’s – well, all the time, really – when he’s running the other teams’ plays – because we don’t have any practice squad backs on our roster, so our backs run the other team’s plays – he gives us a great look on whoever those backs are. And I know every day, every week when he gets his opportunities, he’s ready to go.

“He’s alert, attentive and makes the most out of them. I would 100 percent second everything that Dion said. He’s been a great teammate and he’s done everything that he can to help the team in whatever capacity he’s been asked to do it in.”

Lewis lands honor

On Wednesday, Lewis was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week for his performance against the Bills. Lewis finished the game with a career high 129 yards rushing on 24 attempts and a touchdown and five receptions for 24 yards and a score. Lewis has now totaled 803 rushing yards on 154 attempts with five touchdowns and caught 26 passes for 174 yards and two scores. He is averaging 5.2 yards-per carry this season and if he keeps that pace, he will become the fifth player in team history to finish a season with an average of at least 5 yards per carry (minimum 100 attempts.). It’s the seventh time this year the Patriots have been honored with an AFC Player of the Week Award. … If you’re updating your rosters at home, Harrison will take No. 92. Defensive lineman/special teamer Geneo Grissom, who had No. 92, will switch to No. 96. … ESPN has announced that their 30 for 30 on the relationship between Belichick and Bill Parcells — “The Two Bills” — will air Feb. 1. The special includes a joint sit-down interview with the two of them, something that Belichick addressed when speaking with WEEI last month. "Bill and I, we’ve spent plenty of time together, but that was on camera," Belichick said. “It was down at Giants Stadium in their locker room. We covered a lot of ground. A couple of hours — two or three hours. I can’t remember, exactly. It is always good to be with Bill and reminisce. We won a lot of games together. We had a lot of great times together and I think the NFL Films crew probably, hopefully captured it as good as anybody, probably better than anybody does. Certainly better than anybody else in football.”