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Friday update: Harris is officially listed as questionable. It would still seem unlikely that he’ll play, but it’s worth keeping an eye on.
Thursday update: Harris was able to get in another limited practice on Thursday.
Wednesday update: Harris logged a limited practice Wednesday but he’s still expected to miss multiple weeks with his hamstring injury. That doesn’t bode well for Week 6, and this is likely Bill Belichick playing mind games and making a mockery of the NFL injury report.
The New England Patriots lost running back Damien Harris to a hamstring injury in Week 5 against the Detroit Lions, and it looks like he will miss some games. NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero is reporting that while Harris is still getting tests, the expectation is he will miss multiple games because of the injury.
Will Damien Harris play in Week 6?
It is safe to say he will not play in Week 6 against the Cleveland Browns. The Patriots will release their first practice participation report of the week on Wednesday afternoon, but it appears all but guaranteed he will show up as a DNP.
Who moves up the depth chart?
Rhamondre Stevenson will cement himself as the Patriots’ starting running back for the near future. Stevenson entered Week 5 with more snaps than Harris, but he was getting less work out of the backfield. On Sunday against the Lions, Stevenson took the opportunity and ran with it. He finished the game with 161 yards on 25 carries, and there’s no reason to think he won’t continue getting the bulk of the work.
Rookie Pierre Strong was inactive this past week, but is likely to be active moving forward as a backup to Stevenson. Kevin Harris and J.J. Taylor are on the Patriots practice squad and could earn a promotion with this news. The team could also elect to bring in a veteran, but Stevenson is the go-to guy in this backfield.