All Blacks assistant coach Jason Holland confirmed Caleb Clarke will miss the England Test while sitting out a 12-day concussion stand down, and that has compounded thoughts on the midfield options.
"It's unlucky for him. He's been good. He's come back in the second half of this year fit and strong and enjoying his footy. He's been having a crack, offloading, loving the contests in the air. It is one of those footy things."
He confirmed that Scott Barrett was on track to return, but a final decision will be made in midweek.
The options included leaving Quinn Tupaea and Leicester Fainga'anuku at second five-eighths and centre respectively, or opting for Billy Proctor or Anton Lienert-Brown at centre, with wing options being Reiko Ioane, Sevu Reece or Will Jordan, with Damian McKenzie at fullback.
"There'll be a couple of big decisions made in the next couple of days around how we get the best guys on the park to start and finish the game."
Holland said he had a lot to do with Fainga'anuku before he went overseas, starting when he played for New Zealand Schools.
"He's always been a top man. He's chilled out, loves the game and works pretty hard. He's come in and fitted seamlessly back into the group. He's strong, and some of his carries and the way he offloads and gets his arms free are a massive asset for him.
"But that's not his only strength. He sees the game well. He understands what we're trying to do and some of the offloads are outstanding. He's added a lot as well as being a good and humble young man. It's been great to have him around."
McKenzie's role was another topic for discussion among the selectors.
"His influence on the game [Scotland] was outstanding. I'm sure he doesn't want to be known as a finisher. He'd be dying to be starting whatever games are available to him. It goes hand-in-hand with the wing situation and around what the balance is and how you beat England."
Holland said that how the team approached the early stages of their preparation for England will be essential to get them humming again.
There were some bruises after the physical contest with Scotland, but they were easing after another day of recovery.
"There was some good stuff in the game and some spots where a good Scottish side put us under pressure. We'll address a couple of little things where we can take some pressure off ourselves and back onto the opposition."
They had suffered when dropping the kick-off to the second half and found it hard to turn things around.
"Skill set errors gave Scotland the ball and then a couple of individual errors from trying too hard got us yellow cards and it was a rolling effect."
However, the skill errors were simple mistakes, and against England, who are on a winning streak, it would be necessary to maintain the good things from the Scotland game for longer.
"We don't want any freebies for England because we know they'll hurt us. We know what sort of game they'll play. It'll be no secret; they'll go after us in the air.
"They've done that against most opposition, and it'll be a great challenge for us around where they go there."
The All Blacks' defensive accuracy has been encouraging, and they will look to build on that while also excelling in other areas, all while acknowledging the threat England poses.
Also on the preparation agenda is discipline and avoiding yellow cards.
"There's a personal responsibility. The guys are trying hard, but they've got to be smart in those moments when you're fatigued and under pressure. If we can put pressure moments away as much as possible with our rugby and skills and game management, it'll put us under less pressure.
"We can't have three yellow cards in a game, but we've got to look at some of the ways our rugby controls that. It's not necessarily individual."
All Blacks v England kicks off at 4.10am NZT on Sunday 16 November. Find out how to watch around the world HERE.
