FOXBOROUGH — Jabrill Peppers will return to the field on Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium.

The safety was removed from the commissioner’s exempt list on Monday and the Patriots feel comfortable enough with what they’ve learned in an internal investigation to let him play, sources told MassLive’s Karen Guregian. Peppers was sidelined for almost two months following a domestic dispute. He’s still facing a number of charges with a trial date set for Jan. 22.

Peppers spoke to team owner Robert Kraft before returning, and Jerod Mayo said a number of factors went into the decision to activate him.

“I would say it’s a combination of things,” Mayo said. “Again, I’m grateful for how ownership has allowed Eliot [Wolf] and myself to make these types of decisions. We’ll see what this looks like as it continues to play out. Our focus is on the Colts.”

Peppers’ return led to a somewhat surprising healthy scratch, as Marte Mapu is the odd man out in the safety room.

The 2023 third-rounder had played 79% of the defensive snaps in games he’d been active for, but he’ll watch Sunday from the sideline. Instead, the Patriots are opting to go with Peppers, Kyle Dugger, Jaylinn Hawkins and undrafted rookie Dell Pettus. Special teams ace Brenden Schooler has also moonlighted a bit at safety, securing two sacks in seven defensive snaps.

There were no major surprises elsewhere on New England’s inactive list.

Jaquelin Roy is out with a neck injury, while K.J. Osborn, Lester Cotton, Titus Leo are healthy scratches, and Joe Milton III will once again serve as the emergency third quarterback. After missing the last two games with a foot injury, Deatrich Wise is good to go.