FOXBOROUGH -- Like most high Patriots draft picks in recent years, the injury bug bit Derek Rivers hard almost immediately upon his arrival.

This summer, it got the team's first 2018 selection, first-round offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn, and sidelined him for the season with a ruptured Achilles.

Last year, Rivers tore his ACL and sat out his entire rookie campaign after becoming New England's top pick in 2017.

And the newly-added Cyrus Jones is only newly-added because the team cut its 2016 second-round pick cut on Sept. 1 after a disastrous start to his career, one impacted by a torn ACL.

The thing is, Rivers, who's been fully healthy since the start of training camp, has yet to hit the field. New England made its young pass rusher a healthy scratch for its first two regular-season games. And unless veteran Trey Flowers recovers from his concussion in time to play Sunday at Detroit, it's unclear when Rivers might make his NFL debut.

But that doesn't seem to bother the all-time sacks leader out of Youngstown State.

"Everything that happens, God's got a plan. So that's what I'm sticking to," Rivers said Wednesday. "Just got to keep going, keep getting better and that's the goal. Keep getting better whether you play or not."

Rivers flashed his pass rush potential in the team's second preseason game by notching a clean sack of Eagles quarterback Nick Foles. Within a defensive line still finding its optimal pass rush combinations, it stands to reason the former third-round pick should have a role. Instead, he's contributed on game days by studying opposing offensive linemen and relaying any tips he might gather to his fellow D-linemen when they come off the field.

"You still feel like you're there. But obviously you want the best for your teammates and you want them to strive and you stay engaged and if you see something you tell 'em," Rivers said. "You've got to find the tendencies of the guy you're going against. Gotta know him better than you."

During practice, Rivers says he picks one thing to improve upon each day; a hopeful stepping stone to taking snaps on Sunday. On Wednesday, his focus was run defense. This, the ability to hold the edge, is an area most of the Patriots' young ends could sharpen. Flowers is far and away the best at it.

And while Rivers' fate this weekend likely will be determined by Flowers' health, he's sure the time will come when he's outright earned playing time. And there's only one way Rivers knows how to do that.

"You've just gotta keep practicing as if you'll be out there on Sunday. I've just gotta do whatever the coaches tell me to do," Rivers said. "And when they call my name, I'll be ready."