Patriots downgrade Rowe, Chung and Flowers to out -- who will be asked to do more vs. Lions?

On Saturday night, the Patriots downgraded defensive back Patrick Chung, defensive end Trey Flowers and cornerback Eric Rowe to out. The trio joins tight end Jacob Hollister, who was similarly downgraded on Friday.

So what do the moves mean for Sunday night?


Well, the truth of the matter is the move on Chung and Flowers isn’t a shock, given the fact they missed all week of practice. (Both left last Sunday’s game early because of concussions.) Flowers is easily New England's best pass rusher, and when he left last week's game against the Jags, his absence was palpable -- the Patriots had issues generating any sort of pressure. Defensive end Deatrich Wise, who was dealing with a finger injury of his own in the wake of that game, will almost certainly have more on his plate with Flowers on the shelf.

Rowe has been dealing with a groin issue for the last couple of seasons, but was at practice this week, so that was a mild surprise.

In terms of who will be asked to do more Sunday, these injuries could set the stage for defensive end Derek Rivers (for Flowers) and cornerback J.C. Jackson (for Rowe) to make their NFL debuts against the Lions. It could also open the door for rookie cornerback Keion Crossen, but he’s been dealing with a hamstring, so he might end up sitting as well.

In terms of trying to replace Chung, two possibilities come to mind — Cyrus Jones was seen working with the safeties at the start of practice earlier this week, so he could be a candidate if New England needs depth at the position. It's also almost a certainty Jones takes over Chung's punt return duties. There’s also the possibility of Jason McCourty spending time at safety as well — he did play some safety in the preseason.

In addition, no Hollister means opportunities for others in the passing game, including fullback James Develin (who had four catches in the opener against the Texans when Hollister was out) and tight end Dwayne Allen.

One more interesting note? New receiver Josh Gordon, who was listed all week on the injury report with a hamstring, could still be active.