As expected, Koppen was put on IR today, though it was a separated shoulder rather than a broken arm. A quasi-surprise addition to the IR list was Gay. The decimation of the defensive backfield continues.
Looks more and more like Koppen broke his arm. It had that look during the game, was rumored after the game, and when someone today asked Koppen point blank if his arm was broken, he started to answer, then stopped himself, then said “you’ll find out on Wednesday.”
Not good…not good.
Pats have announced that Givens and Ashworth are out for the Phins game.
The one potential bit of good news about this game is that Seymour made the trip down.
According to the Globe, Duane Starks was placed on IR today. Good riddance.
Brady hasn’t been pleased with the level of intensity the team has been displaying:
They played much better than we did in our own stadium, that’s the most disappointing part. I wish we would have showed a little more fight last night…
[re: injuries]
We’ve dealt with those in the past. We’ve dealt with plenty of injuries. We’ve dealt with plenty of tough situations. I think a lot has to do with the character and toughness of the team. I think we need to show more character…I believe in the guys we’ve got, I think we can play better than we did last night. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be very frustrated. I’d just say, ‘You know what, we’ll never beat those guys.’ But I don’t really feel like that. We weren’t going to beat them last night the way we played, but I thought wholeheartedly we would win that game. I don’t care about injuries. We talk about ourselves as a team. When you talk about yourselves as a team, you mean it, and I mean it. There’s not one guy that makes up the team.
I think it’s a general malaise, we look at the scoreboard and we’re losing and things aren’t going our way. We need to take that as a challenge, (not) go into that funk. We’ve been down in several games this year and come back and fought hard. We all know we’re capable of it. There’s nothing that says we can’t score every time we touch the ball. There’s no rule that says we can’t. But sometimes I think we score and say, ‘Wow, that wasn’t too bad. Let’s go out there again.’ And it’s not the same, and there’s not that same sense of urgency. As a captain, I will stress to the team that we have to start playing with higher expectations for ourselves.
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Reiss, again:
PRACTICE NOTES: Defensive linemen Richard Seymour and Ty Warren; running back Patrick Pass and safety James Sanders weren’t present for the first part of practice opened to the media. The first portion of practice included special teams and stretching. Running back Corey
Dillon rode an exercise bike and then loosened up by running. Three players added to the injury report on Wednesday – tight end Benjamin Watson and receivers Tim Dwight and David Givens – were present for the early part of practice. Receiver Troy Brown and cornerback Randall Gay were present for the second day in a row. The team practiced indoors today, with Patriots coach Bill Belichick saying third down and the red area were top items on the agenda.
This doesn’t give me the greatest of feelings:
The Patriots continue to explore contingency plans at running back.
Accounting for the possibility that Corey Dillon (ankle) and Patrick Pass (hamstring) might not be ready for action against the Colts –- thus leaving them with only newly signed Heath Evans at running back –- the team worked out free agent Olandis Gary on Tuesday.
The 5-foot-11, 218-pound Gary has played for the Broncos (1999-2002) and Lions (2003). He missed last season with a shoulder injury. Over his career, he’s rushed for 1,998 yards and 11 touchdowns in 48 games, with more than half of the yardage coming his rookie season in Denver.
Gary has also been productive in the passing game, catching 59 passes for 415 yards.
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Add Dwight and Watson to the list…arrrrrgh! And Seymour and Dillon were not seen in the portion of practice open to the press (though Gay and Troy Brown were).
Offensive tackle Matt Light (ankle) — out
Running back Kevin Faulk (foot) — out
Receiver Troy Brown (foot) — questionable
Running back Corey Dillon (ankle) — questionable
Receiver Tim Dwight (rib) — questionable
Cornerback Randall Gay (ankle) – questionable
Receiver David Givens (knee) — questionable
Defensive lineman Jarvis Green (shoulder) — questionable
Defensive lineman Marquise Hill (ankle) — questionable
Outside linebacker Willie McGinest (finger) – questionable
Fullback Patrick Pass (hamstring) — questionable
Safety James Sanders (ankle) — questionable
Defensive lineman Richard Seymour (knee) — questionable
Defensive lineman Ty Warren (hip) – questionable
Tight end Benjamin Watson (knee) — questionable
Quarterback Tom Brady (right shoulder) – probable
The Pats cut Zeroeue and signed ex-Seahawk and ex-Dolphin Heath Evans. Patriots’ Nation seems to be split on whether this means Pass is basically OK or whether it means he’s out for some time. I’m voting for “out for some time”, though I fervently hope I’m wrong.
It’s official! Bruschi has been taken off the PUP list and placed on the active roster.
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