New England Patriots: Several Injured Players See The Field in Practice

Tully Banta-Cain, Leigh Bodden, Gary Guyton, and Damione Lewis returned to New England Patriots practice on Monday, as Tweeted by ESPNboston.com's Mike Reiss.

Bill Belichick says that depth is really most important in November and December, but some were beginning to wonder if lack of depth in August may hurt them if they weren't healthy for the season opener.

Good news for Belichick is that he may not have to worry as much as some had thought.

The injury-depleted roster of New England has been the center of discussion surrounding the Patriots this preseason. With a season-ending injury to Ty Warren, the Patriots couldn't afford to lose another defensive linemen or outside linebacker in what had been called a mediocre, at best, pass rush to begin with.

The returns of Tully Banta-Cain and Damione Lewis are huge in those regards.

Getting Leigh Bodden back into the mix at cornerback is big, and the team can now begin to determine whom out of he and McCourty will earn the No. 1 spot. The secondary can also finally begin to build continuity as a unit.

Gary Guyton's return, however, is a bit more quizzical. Brandon Spikes has been groomed into a starting role so far this preseason, having played a majority of the snaps in the first half of the two games.

Guyton has been praised for his speed, as well as his ability to play most of the positions well. Bill Belichick said that the plan is to keep Guyton at inside linebacker, but perhaps Guyton could be tried on the outside just to see how he does. What could it hurt, now that Guyton's back from injury?

The timing of these returns couldn't be much better, either.

They're all returning to action in time for the third preseason game, which has marked the implementing of more plays from the regular season playbook, as this is where teams start to whittle down the roster to the final 53, as well as determine starters at each of the 22 positions.

The Patriots picked a great time to be injured, as they can be fully healthy and ready for the season opener against Cincinnati.

Depth may not matter until November or December, but it certainly doesn't hurt to have your best guys lined up out there during September and October.