Brett Favre did not practice again Thursday and coach Brad Childress continues to take a wait-and-see approach on if the veteran quarterback will be able to play Sunday against New England despite having a stress fracture in his left ankle and another break in his left heel.

"We'll see," Childress said when asked if Favre needed to do some work on Friday. "He's been a little better every day. Whether it's good enough to play in an NFL football game remains to be seen. I'm just taking it a day at a time. That's all we can take it."

Favre, who has expressed a desire to play, said earlier Thursday that he has not spoken to Childress in the past day about whether he might be on the field against the Patriots. Childress said that he has yet to see Favre do any mobility work, "aside from the walking that you've seen him do," and added the quarterback has been holding a play script in practice when he's watching.

Tarvaris Jackson has been taking the first-team reps in practice.

Favre was the only Vikings player on the injury report who did not practice Thursday. Guard Steve Hutchinson (quadriceps) was limited a day after sitting out but he's expected to play against the Patriots.

Also limited for the Vikings were offensive lineman Chris DeGeare (ankle); defensive tackle Letroy Guion (hamstring); cornerback Lito Sheppard (hand); center John Sullivan (calf); and nose tackle Pat Williams (quadriceps). Safety Husain Abdullah (concussion) and cornerback Chris Cook (knee) were on the injury report but did not miss any of practice for a second consecutive day.

Sheppard has a broken finger on his right hand and it's not certain when he will be able to return.

The Patriots, meanwhile, added wide receiver Deion Branch (hamstring) to their injury report. He was limited. Safety Jarrad Page (calf), running back Fred Taylor (toe) and defensive end Mike Wright (knee) did not practice. Safety Patrick Chung (knee) and wide receiver Matthew Slater (ankle) were limited a day after sitting out all of practice.

Childress: I hate when I get that way

Childress said his uncharacteristic display of anger about the officiating and Favre's turnovers were a result of "being aggravated" after Sunday night's loss at Green Bay. "That's it," Childress said. "You snap every now and then. It does happen."

Childress, though, wasn't pleased with himself. "I hate when I get that way. I hate it," he said. "But still fighting those demons and everybody's got them. Players, coaches. Everybody's got them. I acknowledge it."