Welcome to first and 10, a roundup of all the (mostly) Patriots-related news you need to start your Thursday. Grab your coffee and let’s get to it.
--Looks like the Patriots are still roughly 5-point favorites.
--Speaking of odds, the guys at Bovada have a few to share when it comes to the Patriots. That includes the latest Super Bowl odds. (They've taken the AFC East odds off the board, FWIW.)
--Could be looking at a weather situation on Sunday afternoon. This is via weather.com.
--If you're coming to Sunday's game, fans are encouraged to bring new and unwrapped toy donations to the collection bins outside the entry gates at Gillette or to the Patriots Pro Shop prior to the game as part of the annual Toy Drive. All who donate at Sunday’s game will receive a 10 percent discount coupon to the Patriots Pro Shop. Toys donated by fans will be delivered by Patriots players at upcoming holiday charitable events for children in need. Toys will serve children ranging from newborn to 18 years old. To learn more about the holiday toy drive, click here.
Thursday’s Schedule
12:35 p.m.: Media availability at practice
4-4:45 p.m.: Approximate time for player availability (locker room) and Devin McCourty media availability (media workroom)
Now, on with the links...
1. Greg has his film breakdown of the win over the Jets, where he has plenty of good things to say about the work of the defense.
2. Rex Burkhead is ready to make his return to game action. But just how successful have the Patriots been when it comes to guys after they've had a stint on IR-DFR? History says it's been a mixed bag.
3. The notebook has Mike Zimmer marveling at how the Patriots are using Cordarrelle Patterson, as well as the latest injury report.
4. Video - Rob Gronkowski on the challenge of facing the Vikings.
5. I spent some quality time Wednesday night talking Patriots with Adam Jones of 98.5.
6. And Greg talked Patriots with Gresh.
7. Phil Perry says when it comes to this weekend's game against Minnesota, Josh McDaniels and the Pats are faced with a run-game conundrum.
8. Does Bill Belichick have a new binky? On Wednesday, he mentioned Minnesota's Harrison Smith in the same breath as Ed Reed, which is the highest of high praise when it comes to the New England head coach.
9. From Minnesota, Ben Goessling writes when it comes to Brady and the Patriots, their December dominance at home is the real deal.
10. Things are looking good for Minnesota's All-Pro corner Xavier Rhodes this weekend against New England, as his hamstring is apparently trending in the right direction.
Extra Point:
Here's the visual of Gronk answering my question and later @RochieWBZ. I'm telling you, this is the best spirits he's been in in some time, these last 10 days or so https://t.co/qgk1WdDTqm
— Michael Giardi (@MikeGiardi) November 28, 2018