FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — As the New England Patriots took the practice fields on Monday morning in preparation for their upcoming preseason finale, one prominent and highly-touted receiver was conspicuous by his absence.

Pats’ rookie receiver Efton Chism III — one of New England’s most-exciting young offensive weapons — was among the players who did not participate in the session. Though no reason for his absence was initially given, Patriots insider Mike Reiss was quickly able to provide additional context on Chism’s current status.

“[Efton Chism] didn’t practice after having his foot/ankle looked at Saturday by athletic trainers following his catch-and-run touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings,” Reiss reported shortly after the conclusion of Monday’s practice. “He rode the stationary bike rather rigorously today. Based on that eye test, seems like a shorter-term absence in play.”

Chism’s outstanding performance has placed him among the most-watched players on the Pats roster throughout and the preseason. His versatile playing style and persistent work ethic has rapidly earned him the respect and trust of his quarterbacks: starter Drake Maye and reserves Ben Wooldridge and Joshua Dobbs.

In addition to catching Maye’s watchful eye, Chism’s efforts in the first half of preseason game 2 have likely earned him a spot on the Patriots initial 53-man roster. The Eastern Washington product led all receivers by catching six passes for 71 yards. With time expiring in the first half, the Pats rookie caught the aforementioned touchdown — a 12-yard pass from Dobbs to cap a 13-play, 88-yard drive for the score.

Throughout camp practices, Chism has frequently been heralded as one of the team’s hardest workers and most productive offensive weapons. In fact, he was one of New England’s standout performers during their 48-18 victory over the Washington Commanders in last Friday’s preseason opener. Chism caught six passes for 50 yards and a third-quarter touchdown catch from Wooldridge. No matter the setting, Chism possesses the agility to fluidly change direction, along with sure-handed strength at the catch point — traits which are certainly not lost on his head coach, Mike Vrabel.

“It doesn’t matter how you get here. The only thing that matters is what you do when you’re here, and I think that’s another great example of that,” Vrabel said of Chism following Saturday’s game. “‘Chis’, when given opportunities, has taken advantage of them. We’ve talked about his play strength last week, and I would say that continued to be true this week.”

While Chism’s injury is certainly worth monitoring, Reiss’ report appears to indicate that his status with the team for the upcoming season is unlikely to be drastically altered. Accordingly, nearly every Patriots’ 53-man roster projection heretofore may still include Efton Chism within their receivers depth chart — much to the delight of Pats Nation.

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