FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Bill Belichick has never been one to tip his hand on anything, especially his plans leading into a game.

He was even more coy than usual in this short week as New England prepared to host the Texans (2-0) tonight in the aftermath of quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo injuring his throwing shoulder in last week’s win over Miami.

With Tom Brady still two weeks shy of the end of his “Deflategate” suspension, rookie Jacoby Brissett is the next healthy man in line. But two things complicate him possibly getting his first start.

First, Belichick has only once started a rookie quarterback — Eric Zeier during his final season as coach of the Browns in 1995. Secondly, there’s the very real question whether Belichick feels comfortable enough throwing Brissett into his first NFL start opposite an active Houston defense that leads the league with nine sacks in two games.

Add to that Garoppolo hasn’t been completely ruled out, after he returned to practice on a limited basis Tuesday. He is listed as doubtful.

“Each week it seems like there is always some position that you have to take into consideration what your depth is there,” Belichick said. “Obviously, you take into consideration your opponent and how you want to try and play the game, what you want to try and do against them, and put it all together and do the best you can.”

New England (2-0) will match up with a Houston quarterback with some success against it on his resume. Brock Osweiler was under center last November in Denver when the Broncos overcame a 14-0 deficit for a 30-24 overtime victory to give New England its first loss of 2015.

Osweiler said coach Bill O’Brien told him that game went a long way in him wanting to bring the 25-year-old to Houston, and that he certainly gained confidence from it.

“I definitely am looking at it as two different football games, but I definitely went back, I looked at last year’s game, I looked at my notes from last year and I can definitely use that as a tool moving forward,” Osweiler said.

Here are some other things to look for on Thursday:

Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski began the week still limited by a hamstring injury that kept him sidelined for the first two games. He said after Tuesday’s practice that he felt “decent” and hopes to play. “Just trying to do everything I can right now to be as healthy as I can be,” he said. LB Dont’a Hightower (knee), who sat out last week’s win, was also inching closer to getting back on the field with his return to practice this week.

Whomever the Patriots put at quarterback, he will face a defense that ranks in the top 10 in seven categories. Houston’s defense hasn’t allowed a touchdown in six consecutive quarters.