Patriots LB Robert Spillane and OLB Harold Landry III Listed as Questionable for Super Bowl LX

Only three Patriots will carry injury designations into the Super Bowl, with LB Robert Spillane (ankle), OLB Harold Landry III (knee), and DT Joshua Farmer (hamstring) officially questionable. Patriots QB Drake Maye is off the injury report and is good to go after working through a right shoulder injury that he suffered in the AFC Championship Game. As for Seattle, FB Robbie Ouzts (neck) is the lone player listed on the Seahawks injury report as questionable for Super Bowl LX.

Starting with the Patriots star quarterback, Maye was a full participant in all three practices at Stanford University this week after taking it easy on his right throwing shoulder during the bye week. The Pats QB appeared to aggravate his shoulder during the third quarter of the AFC Championship Game win over the Broncos, limiting him in practice last Thursday, and he sat out last Friday’s session due to his shoulder and an illness. Maye practiced in full once the team arrived in Santa Clara and doesn’t expect to have any limitations on Sunday.

Earlier this week, Maye told reporters at Super Bowl opening night that he felt like he “turned a corner” with his right shoulder on the team flight to the Bay Area. In his final media availability before Super Bowl LX, Maye reiterated that he’s feeling good heading into Sunday’s game.

“Like I said, I’m not trying to lie to you guys. I’m saying I’m feeling great. I’m feeling great and looking forward to getting out there,” Maye said on Thursday. “I’m really excited. A chance to play in this game is a dream come true and what you work for all year long.”

With all systems go for the Patriots quarterback, the attention turns to the defense and the status of starting linebacker Robert Spillane. Spillane exited the AFC title game with an ankle injury in the first quarter and didn’t return. He then sat out the first three practices in the lead-up to the Super Bowl before returning in a limited capacity on Thursday and Friday.

Although he’s officially questionable, Spillane has told reporters that he plans on playing on Sunday. If he does play, the question is how effective will he be? The Seahawks led the league in called run rate (48.7%) inside their West Coast offense. Seattle wants to run the ball to stay on schedule and dial up play-action, with QB Sam Darnold leading the NFL in EPA per play-action pass, so having their best run-stuffing linebacker healthy would be ideal. Spillane is also well-versed as a zone-dropper in coverage off play-action, a key piece in the defense.

The other Patriots defender on the active roster who is questionable for the Super Bowl is Landry, who sat out the AFC Championship Game after playing only part-time in the first two playoff rounds. Landry initially injured his knee in the first quarter of the Patriots Week 6 win over the Saints. The Pats captain then sat out New England’s final two regular-season games to rest his knee, returning to play just 27.4% of the defensive snaps in the Wild Card and divisional rounds.

After sitting out the AFC title game, Landry did practice in a limited capacity in Wednesday’s and Friday’s sessions at Stanford University. Without Landry, the Pats have gotten good production out of outside linebackers Anfernee Jennings and Elijah Ponder opposite top edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson, with the two combining for six total pressures and three run stuffs vs. the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. If the Pats captain can’t play, expect Jennings and Ponder to continue filling in for Landry on the edge.

On the other side, the focus for Seattle is on the status of standout rookie S Nick Emmanwori, who injured his ankle during Seahawks practice on Wednesday. Emmanwori is a hybrid defender who plays a similar role as Ravens S Kyle Hamilton in head coach Mike Macdonald’s defense. His combination of linebacker-like playing strength and safety-like cover skills allows Seattle to play the second-highest rate of nickel defense in the NFL (76.5%) while still being first in rush EPA. Despite injuring his ankle mid-week, Emannwori doesn’t have an injury designation and is expected to play.

Heading into Super Bowl LX, both the Patriots and Seahawks have key defenders whose statuses are up in the air, which we’ll continue to monitor up until game time. The two teams also have until 4 p.m. ET on Saturday to elevate players from the practice squad, with RB D’Ernest Johnson and DT Leonard Taylor III as prime elevation candidates for New England. Then, the two teams will need to declare players inactive to reach the game-day limit.

The Patriots and Seahawks will then square off in Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara on Sunday.