Julian Edelman will have to wait a little bit longer to get on the field, and it could be a while before the Patriots are at full strength.

Edelman, who signed a three-year deal this offseason, was seen this weekend with a small brace on his left thumb and is expected to miss about three weeks with the injury, per ESPN. It’s unclear whether he suffered a break or a sprain.

Though three weeks during training camp might mean little in the grand scheme of things, New England has no shortage of players who will be sitting out as affairs begin this week. Sony Michel and Demaryius Thomas will also start training camp on the PUP list, per ESPN. Josh Gordon is suspended. As their offense starts to try and move past the departure of Rob Gronkowski via retirement in the offseason, Tom Brady figures to lose valuable reps with guys on the first team.

“I’m extremely excited for the new year,” Edelman told ESPN at a youth camp. “With training camp coming up, this is kind of like when school is back in session. We had summer break. You get to see all the fellas, and this is where you learn your team, learn each other and become accountable for each other, and create a consistency together.

“This is like the beginning shape form of your team, these next few weeks. It’s a crucial point. You put a lot of hard work in during the spring and it’s the next step until you’re playing with other teams.”

The Patriots will hope their offensive weapons don’t suffer too much from missing it.