FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Patriots defensive tackle Alan Branch, who suffered a knee injury in Monday's loss to the Miami Dolphins, was not spotted at the start of Wednesday's walkthrough, which seems to be an indication that the injury has a significant chance of keeping him out of Sunday's road game against the Steelers.
Furthermore, the team's re-signing of veteran defensive tackle Ricky Jean Francois on Wednesday seems to strengthen the odds the Patriots will be without Branch, who has played 31.5 percent of the defensive snaps this season.