Patriots takeaways from Germany: What Mike Vrabel said about A.J. Brown playing in Munich

November 13, 2026 · Yahoo Sports

MUNICH – After making the trip to Munich, will A.J. Brown play on Sunday against the Detroit Lions?

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That was the big question facing the Patriots on Friday. Temperatures dipped into the low 40s as the team held a full 90-minute practice at the FC Bayern Munich training facility. After flying into Munich on Thursday, and holding a 60-minute walkthrough, Mike Vrabel’s team picked up the pace.

The Patriots coach said he felt “pretty good” about the status of A.J. Brown and Rhamondre Stevenson after watching the two players at Thursday’s practice.

“So, let’s go through today and see where that goes and then meet with (trainer) Jim (Whalen) and meet with players,” Vrabel said.

Brown has played in three of nine games this season. The Pro Bowl receiver missed four weeks in a row after suffering a high ankle sprain in the team’s regular-season opener in Seattle. After returning, and playing twice in five days, Brown’s been dealing with a nagging knee injury.

The receiver missed two weeks of practices and the Patriots matchups against Miami and Green Bay. Brown returned to practice on Wednesday before flying with the team on Thursday.

“I think the more that we can get everybody back, I think the more that it contributes to what we feel like we want to be as a team,” Vrabel said when asked about having Brown at practice. “And one guy certainly doesn’t make the difference, but it’s certainly the more that we can get guys back. It’s exciting that the pieces can start to build and come together. So, you know, we’ll see where things go today. And hopefully, you know, those guys that haven’t been with us or maybe got hurt last week, that could be available.”

In three games, Brown’s caught nine passes for 101 yards. He’d be a huge boost for Drake Maye and the offense, if healthy. After dealing with two different injuries, Vrabel was asked if the team needed to protect Brown from himself when it comes to how much they play him when he does return.

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“I mean, again, we just have to try to see where things go and how they feel, and we got to trust them a little bit, how they tell us and also have a plan for each and every guy,” Vrabel said. “I think it’s kind of see how it goes.”

In their final injury report, Brown was ruled questionable for Sunday’s game against Detroit.

Here are the top takeaways from the Patriots’ second day in Munich:

Will Rhamondre Stevenson play?

If Brown plays, it’d be a huge boost for the offense. The same can be said if Rhamondre Stevenson is cleared to play on Sunday.

The running back suffered a knee injury last weekend against Green Bay. On Monday, ESPN and the NFL Network reported Stevenson would miss weeks due to his injury. However, Stevenson flew with the team to Munich and practiced the last two days.

Stevenson’s presence here has been surprising. Vrabel said the veteran is working hard to play and admires his attitude.

“I think we’re just always looking for guys that are looking for ways in as opposed to ways out,” Vrabel said. “At this point in the season, 10 weeks straight without a bye, there’s pretty much nobody out there that’s 100% and we have to realize that. We have to recognize that. But we also have to find ways to do our job and Rhamondre’s one of those players that is looking for a way in.”

Stevenson was with his teammates at the start of practice, but was not wearing his jersey. The team listed him as limited on Thursday.

Considering he’s the Patriots leading rusher and his impact in the passing game within blitz pickup, it’d be huge for the offense if Stevenson could play this weekend.

The running back was listed as questionable in the team’s final injury report.

TreVeyon Henderson update

The Patriots running back room is running short. TreVeyon Henderson didn’t travel with the team this week due to his illness.

Last week, Henderson revealed that he’d been dealing with an undiagnosed neurological condition. Vrabel said he didn’t have a timeline for the speedy back’s return.

“I talk to TreVeyon every day and just like everybody else that’s not available, he’s working hard to get back and when that is, I don’t know,” Vrabel said. “I don’t have a timetable. But I love my interactions with him, I love talking with him.”

If Henderson is going to be out for the foreseeable future, the Patriots could place him on the non-football injury list. The issue, however, is that the team is running out of injured reserve-return slots. Every team gets eight per season. The Patriots already used five with Romeo Doubs and Alijah Vera-Tucker eligible to return after the bye week.

Vrabel was asked if they’re weighing putting Henderson on the reserve list due to the limited options they have.

“Yeah, those are things that we work through. You know, we’re very conscious of that and we’re just until we absolutely need the spot and we haven’t had that necessarily pinch and still also just have to try to figure out when he may be available,” Vrabel said. “But then also you’re right, we have guys coming back from, from injured reserve or designated to return. So there’s a lot of things that we have to weigh through with the roster.”

Why Patriots arrived early

The Patriots lost their last two international matchups in London and Frankfurt. In both cases, the Patriots flew Thursday night and held one practice on Friday before the Sunday matchup.

This week, Vrabel opted to change that by having the team fly in a day early to get two practices in to help ease the jetlag.

“You know, just having done this a few times and maybe how you feel coming over here on Friday and what you’re able to get done. I felt like we wanted to try to do a little bit more maybe than had been done in the past on a Friday,” Vrabel said. “So, get here a day early to be able to walk through. Come over here last night, walk through. I thought helped guys just get moving a little bit, get the airplane and get the flight out of us and then got up this morning. It’s been a regular Friday and we’ll get going on practice here pretty soon.”

Homecoming for Patriots tackle

This week has been a homecoming for Lorenz Metz. The Patriots offensive tackle was born in Neuötting in Bavaria, Germany.

Metz has had an interesting journey to the NFL as he didn’t play football until 18. Now, he’s close to his hometown and practicing at the training facility for the soccer team he grew up rooting for.

“It’s a surreal feeling,” Metz said. “I grew up about an hour from here. FC Bayern was the team for me—Thomas Müller, (Manuel) Neuer, all those Bayern players were my idols. To be standing on this pitch now—it’s just incredible.”

Metz played in the German Football League for the Kirchdorf Wildcats in 2017. The next year, he moved to the United States and played collegiately at Cincinnati. In 2023, he entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent. He’s been on the practice squads in Chicago and Tampa Bay before joining the Patriots practice squad last season.

Metz said he started to watch the NFL when Germany first started broadcasting the games. At the time, the Patriots and Tom Brady were the most popular.

“I think it was around 2012 when they started broadcasting regular-season games on free-to-air TV in Germany,” Metz said. “Back then—2012, 2014, 2016—the Patriots were right at the top, thanks to Tom Brady. They were the team everyone knew; everyone knew Tom Brady.”

This week, Metz gathered his teammates for a team dinner in Munich. He wouldn’t reveal what restaurant they went to, but said he wanted to give Patriots teammates a true feel of the food and culture that he grew up in.

“I wanted to give my teammates a taste of Bavarian culture,” Metz said. “We’ll definitely have some beer steins, and there will be traditional Bavarian dishes like roast pork and schnitzel.”

Milton Williams institutes $1,000 fine

Milton Williams has seen enough. Now, it’s time for his teammates to pay up.

Over the last two games, the Patriots defensive linemen have been called for offside penalties seven times. The group had four penalties against Miami and then three last weekend against Green Bay.

For that reason, Williams has instituted a fine for his teammates. Every time a player gets called for a defensive offside penalty, they owe Williams $1,000. At the end of the season, the money will be donated to the Patriots support staff.

“I put in fines this week. $1,000 fine for whoever jumps offside,” Williams said. “I had a couple early, early in the season. And I feel like we talk about it, but it’s not enough consequences to come with it other than hurting the team. So hurt your pockets.”