Patriots without Carlton Davis, Ben Brown in Munich; Lions sit DB Keith Abney
Patriots CB Carlton Davis III and G/C Ben Brown are inactive vs. the Lions in Munich, while Detroit scratches DB Keith Abney and CB D.J. Reed.
The New England Patriots will play the Detroit Lions in Munich on Sunday without cornerback Carlton Davis III or interior lineman Ben Brown. Both have knee injuries and both are on New England's inactive list for the Week 10 game on Fox. Detroit is also missing part of its secondary. Defensive back Keith Abney II is among the Lions' six inactives, along with cornerback D.J. Reed (hip), SB Nation's Pride of Detroit reported.
The Patriots ruled out Davis and Brown on Wednesday, before the team flew to Germany. 98.5 The Sports Hub noted that Davis's status was the bigger surprise of the two. Neither player practiced all week, according to the team's official injury report. New England's other inactives are safety Brenden Schooler, who was on the report with a hamstring injury, offensive linemen Walter Rouse and Dametrious Crownover, and quarterback Behren Morton, the emergency third quarterback.
The news on offense is better. Wide receiver A.J. Brown and running back Rhamondre Stevenson were both questionable and are both active, Pro Football Talk reported. Brown returns after missing the last two games. Rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson had been ruled out with an illness, and Yahoo Sports reported that the team placed him on injured reserve Saturday.
What the absences change for New England
The Patriots come to Munich at 5-4 after a 45-27 home loss to Green Bay. That was the most points they have allowed this season, and now they face a strong Detroit offense without a veteran starting cornerback. Davis's absence means more snaps for the depth corners against a Lions passing game that has Amon-Ra St. Brown, who was also questionable but is active.
Up front, losing Brown at left guard means New England has to change its interior line again. With Rouse also inactive, the Patriots have fewer backup linemen. On the other side, Detroit is without starting center Cade Mays (ankle). Edge rusher Ahmed Hassanein, defensive lineman Mekhi Wingo and linebacker Amen Ogbongnemiga are also inactive for the Lions, who called up linebacker Owen Pappoe from the practice squad for the game.
With Stevenson active and Henderson out, the backfield workload should go mostly to Stevenson, assuming his knee holds up.
What the market says
As of Sunday morning, Detroit is a 57% favorite across 12 sportsbooks and prediction markets on our game odds page. The sportsbooks have the Lions at 57% and the prediction markets have them slightly higher at 58%. Polymarket gives Detroit its best chance at 58%, and FanDuel gives the lowest at 56%. The Lions are favored by 2.5 points, with spreads running from -3 to -2.5 depending on the venue. The total is 51, with a range of 50.5 to 51.5.
On the moneyline, the best Patriots price is +135 at Novig. Polymarket has New England at +134 and Kalshi at +124. The best Lions price is also at Novig, at -138. For anyone taking the points, Hard Rock Bet has New England at +3 for -120, and Novig has them at +2.5 for +108. On the total, DraftKings has the best over at 50.5 (-115), and Novig has the best under at 51.5 (-104). These prices will keep moving until kickoff.
