What about Bob?

The Patriots' outside linebacker underwent surgery to repair a broken forearm, but he hasn't been place on injured reserve. That means the Patriots believe there is an outside chance he can return in time for the playoffs ... assuming New England gets that far.

An 18-year-old Patriots cheerleader was kicked off the squad yesterday after pictures from Facebook showed up with her posing over a passed-out acquaintance who has some bad, bad words and two swastikas on his body.

Uh, not quite the image the Patriots want to project to their fans.

She'll be working elsewhere in the future.

Ms. Davis' hometown paper wrote a story about her a while back, and indicated that she was one of only 24 of 300 applicants to make the cut for the squad.

He recently had a surgical procedure to address a potential infection in his reconstructed left knee. The Boston Herald reports that he has had to undergo two more procedures in connection with the problem.
An infection can potentially compromise the entire reconstructive surgery, which means Brady faces the possibility of having to do it again. In that case, his return to the field could be significantly delayed.

Repeat after us, Patriots fans: Oy.

... and now they're without their top running back.

The team has placed Laurence Maroney (shoulder) on injured reserve.

Tell you what. If the Patriots make the playoffs this year, it will have been one of Bill Belichick's best coaching jobs ever. Including his Super Bowl years.

Despite a poor performance in Sunday night's game against the Chargers, Patriots coach Bill Belichick has no intention of benching Matt Cassel.

Then again, what choice does Belichick have in this Tom Brady-less situation? Cassel's backup is third-round rookie Kevin O'Connell.

I'd been chided by a couple readers before the Chargers game for putting the Patriots so low in the Power Rankings - I had them 11th before the Chargers game and then dropped them to 17th after the loss

The Patriots are simply not the same team without Brady, and with a defense that has been all over the map as far as consistency is concerned.

He underwent reconstructive knee surgery on Monday in Los Angeles, and all indications are he'll be ready for the start of training camp next year. Knowing Brady, it might even be sooner.

I'm sorry I didn't get to this earlier, especially after the spirited discussion among Glauber Nation readers that ensued after Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, widely regarded by fellow players as one of the dirtiest in the NFL, complained about fans cheering when Tom Brady got hurt in Week 1.

But Harrison accused Ricky Williams of a cheap shot in Sunday's loss to the Dolphins. The play in question was on a downfield block for which Williams was not penalized.

In this case, Mr. Harrison should not have complained. What's that expression about the pot calling the kettle black?

That's what he essentially said in August when he met with former Giants quarterback Jeff Hostetler at training camp.

Brady hasn't said publicly how much longer he will play. But a few days after his 31st birthday, he told Hostetler - in front of the Patriots' other quarterbacks - that he wanted to play 10 more years.

"Tom had said he wanted to play for the next 10 years, and the young [quarterbacks] kind of rolled their eyes and said, 'Oh, geez, thanks.'"

This, of course, was before Brady suffered a season-ending knee injury on opening day. But it gives you some indication that Brady has no plans of going anywhere any time soon.

The kid faced the media a few minutes ago, and shared his thoughts on his situation.

A couple of nuggets, to be followed by a few more in the newspaper tomorrow:

On what he needs to do to be successful: "I just have to execute the offense and win."

On his relationship with Tom Brady: "He's been very supportive of me the last four years."

On how his life has changed since Brady was hurt: "I became a lot more popular after Sunday's game."

On the Jets' defense: "They've got a great scheme and do a really good job of disguising things."

On the difference between him and Brady: "Tom is who he is and I am who I am.m I'll just try to execute the game plan. We're different quarterbacks. That's how it's going to be."

... evidently, plenty of people cheered in sports bars when word spread about Brady's injury. It's a terrible commentary about the world of sports - about the world, period - but that's the way it is.

The Patriots accept it. They don't like it, but they accept it.

"That reaction is normal," Patriots safety Rodney Harrison said. "Anything that happens to us people, they get excited about. Obviously, they don't care for us much around the league. But I understand it's a competitive league. Teams, as well as fans, are looking for any edge they can possibly get and if that means us losing our star quarterback, guess what, they feel like that gives them an edge. At the same time, you still gotta get it done on the field."

What Harrison said next really should hit home, especially for those fans who are stupid enough to cheer when someone gets hurt. "People sometimes lose sight that we're brothers, we're fathers, sons. They look at us like machines. A lot of times, people really don't consider that we're human-beings, we have feelings, it hurts. We go through a bunch of different things, but they get so wrapped up in the game, that it's not real life... We're sacrificing, away from our families... as a football player, you understand it's a part of the deal. You're going to get hurt playing football. It's just how you respond."

Just a few minutes after the Patriots' star receiver said on a national conference call that the Patriots were still the "team to beat," Moss failed to show for the early portion of practice. Late this afternoon, the team listed Moss as having limited participation in practice because of a back problem.

It's not believed to be serious enough to keep him out of Sunday's game at the Meadowlands, but it's still something to keep an eye on.

In addition to tearing the anterior cruciate ligament on Sunday, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady also suffered a torn medial collateral ligament, according to a league source familiar with Brady's situation.

It is uncertain whether the ligament will have to be surgically repaired. In many cases, an athlete can rehab the MCL without surgery. Brady's ACL will be surgically repaired, although the surgery hasn't been scheduled.

The injury to Brady's MCL was first reported by the Boston Globe website.

They're doing it like never before. In the wake of Tom Brady's season-ending knee injury, New England is hardly giving up the ship. In fact, the players are living by Bill Belichick's mantra that he laid down in a meeting earlier today.

In fact, he uses this mantra in just about every meeting: Just do your job and don't worry about anyone else's.

"That's the message," corneraback Ellis Hobbs said. "Just take care of what you've got to do."

I wouldn't write them off just yet.

They seem to have a Hall of Fame coach on the sidelines who has done a thing or two during his NFL career. Those 5 Super Bowl rings and two additional Super Bowl appearances speak to his accomplishments.

Of course, if Bill Belichick can get the Patriots to the playoffs under the current circumstances, it would constitute a minor miracle.

I wrote about the situation for today's newspaper.

I'll be heading up to Foxboro to check out the Pats' mood, and I'll fill you in on the details.

And I mean everything.

The AFC East.

The AFC playoffs.

The whole shabang.

It gives the Jets and Bills hope in the AFC East.

It gives everyone else in the conference hope.

In a word: wow.

In two words: Matt Cassel.

We're about to find out.

Tom Brady limped off the field at Gillette Stadium a few minutes ago after suffering what appeared to be a left knee injury.

The Jets are beating the Dolphins 7-0. It should be 10-0. Mike Nugent just missed a 32-yard field goal attempt.

This, according to Boston radio station WEEI. Brady is still expected to play through it.

Or is he? According to a website called nfljuice.com, Brady will miss 2-4 weeks.

Brady does a weekly show on the station, but we doubt he'd surrender that info, given his coach essentially makes his players take a blood oath about not discussing injuries.

Then again ...

Dom Capers might be doing the same thing in New England.

The former Texans and Panthers head coach decided to sign on with Belichick's staff as the secondary coach. It's a similar career track as Belichick himself, who joined Bill Parcells' Patriots staff in 1996 as the secondary coach after being fired by the Browns. The Patriots went to the Super Bowl that year, and Belichick then went with Parcells to New York as the Jets' defensive coordinator. He became the Patriots head coach in 2000.

Capers is especially important to this year's Patriots team, since the secondary is in flux after the departures of free agents Asante Samuel, Randall Gay and Eugene Wilson.

The Patriots’ illegal videotaping of the Jets’ defensive signals last season led to a new rule that allows coach-to-headset communication by the defense so that signals won’t be needed. But through the first part of training camp, the Patriots haven’t given any indication that they will even use the system.

That’s right. Team sources tell me that because of some logistical challenges involving which players would wear the helmets with the headsets, Bill Belichick might not use the system at all. Or, if he does, it could be on a limited basis.

After a visit to Giants' camp yesterday, we swung by Patriots camp today in Foxboro. And who should be on hand but former Giants quarterback Jeff Hostetler, whose unexpected run to the Super Bowl XXV championship was one of the most stunning accomplishments ever.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick, who was the Giants' defensive coordinator when Hostetler beat the Bills in the Super Bowl, invited Hostetler to speak to the team after practice.

But Hostetler wasn't here just to talk to Belichick. He was here to cheer on his nephew, tight end Jonathan Stupar, who is attempting to make the team as a free agent. Stupar had a solid career at Virginia, overcoming a heart ailment along the way.

Doctors had discovered that Stupar was suffering from Wolfe Parkinson White Syndrome, a heart condition that can prove fatal. The condition was repaired through surgery.

... then again, he's still not ready to play again after undergoing off-season rotator cuff surgery.

If Seau does come back, he says it will only be with the Patriots.
Then again, New England might not have a need at the position, because rookie Jerod Mayo has had a terrific camp so far, working mostly inside next to Tedy Bruschi.

In one of his rare off-season interviews with media hacks at Pats practice, the quarterback talked about a bunch of stuff.

I'm not normally in the habit of posting transcripts, but in this case, I'll make an exception. After all, it's Tom Brady. It's the Patriots.

At one point, he makes a derisive comment about the Jets ... not on paper, but it's pretty evident that he's not serious in saying that Gang Green is his favorite team, other than the Patriots.

If you'd like to view the link, click here.

(I love the first question. Very hard-hitting. If you're a journalism major, please pay attention).

Q: How are you, Tom?

TB: It’s going well. It was a good day of practice.

Q: Good to be back out there?

TB: Yeah. I think it’s been an exciting spring for the team. I think everyone is excited to be back and I think has a really good attitude. So we’re just looking forward to making some improvements in the next six weeks and then getting back here at the end of next month [for training camp].

Q: What are you looking to improve personally?

TB: I think it’s always team improvement. We’re always trying to find ways to evolve as a team and evolve as an offense. You realize that a lot of the things we did last year probably won’t work this year. It’s important to move forward and understand things that we need to do better. I’m not going to tell you guys [what they are] because I don’t want the Jets to find out. But there is plenty for this team to improve on.

Q: Do you think everyone has pretty much shaken off the Super Bowl loss?

TB: I hope so. There are a lot of new guys who weren’t a part of that, so they don’t bring any of those memories or that energy in here. The guys who have been here, Coach Belichick has really been preaching to us that what happened last year is something for us to learn from and move on from. In life, you don’t reflect too much on what happened in the past. You try to learn from it and build on it. We can only control what we did today, which in this case was a really good practice.

At least that's what the Patriots' veteran safety keeps insisting when anyone brings up last year's miracle catch by David Tyree during the Giants' improbable 17-14 win over the previously unbeaten Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.

The bad news just keeps pouring in from New England.

This time, it's starting right tackle Nick Kaszur who was busted in April for possession of prescription painkillers. Kaszur may have saved himself some legal aggravation by cooperating with police to nab his supplier.

But he won't escape the attention of the NFL, which may turn around and discipline him with a fine and/or suspension. At the very least, he will be evaluated for the NFL's substance abuse program.

I don't know who wrote this, but I do know he took no prisoners in ripping the media over its handling of Spygate.

Caution: if you open this link, you will see steam pouring out of your computer.

He calls it the "most disgraceful episode in recent sports media history."

Enough said.

Our new Jets' writer, Erik Boland, is a mild-mannered sort, very well-behaved, modest, and earnest.

Which is why I refer to him as a "bubbling cauldron of intensity." Beneath the Jimmy Olson veneer lies a man with a lot of stuff floating around in his brain. Which I guess explains why he got into the writing business.

Anyway, I just thought I'd mention that because Boland let Belichick and the Patriots have it over their various interviews in recent days in the wake of the latest Spygate developments. In one fell swoop of a blogpost, Boland ripped Belichick for ripping Matt Walsh, ripped Bob Kraft for ripping the Boston Herald, and then ripped Tom Brady for ripping ESPN.

Jeepers!

(Full disclosure: Part of Boland's angst may have been traceable to the fact he was "out of uniform" as the Jets' beat writer and helping Newsday's coverage of the Subway Series at Yankee Stadium last night. In case you weren't aware, media types covering baseball have massive amounts of time from before, during and after the game to not only cover the goings-on, talk to other "seamheads," as baseball writers are often referred to, and to otherwise contemplate their navels. Thus, the explosive brew of a bubbling cauldron of intensity, covering baseball, thinking about Spygate, and having a blog to put it all down. PS: He makes some very compelling and interesting points. Please read it.)

That's been a huge question in recent weeks, especially with the story in the Feb. 2 Boston Herald that indicated the Rams' walkthrough the day before the 2002 Super Bowl had been taped.

Herald beat reporter John Tomase, whose career hangs in the balance over his report that turned out to be false, did not give up his source in his mea culpa to Herald readers that was published on Friday.

But it is widely speculated that Walsh was the main source for his story.

And Patriots coach Bill Belichick, in his interview with CBS reporter Armen Keteyian, said he'd heard Walsh had told people that he had, in fact, taped the walkthrough. Walsh told NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Pennyslvania Sen. Arlen Specter on Tuesday that he did not tape the walkthrough and did not know of anyone else who had taped it.

The issue is an important one, since it is at the heart of whether Walsh is a credible source or not.

He had some powerful things to say in his remarks to Goodell and Specter. But if he had, in fact, been telling people that he had taped the walkthrough, or that he knew of someone who had taped the walkthrough, then his credibility is certainly compromised.

The fact that he was fired by the Patriots for poor performance, as well as secretly audiotaping Patriots personnel director Scott Pioli (both of which were noted by Belichick in the CBS interview) is all the more reason to at least look at Walsh's remarks with a hint of skepticism.

It's not to say that Walsh was wrong about everything he told Goodell and Specter. But if he has changed his story (and there are people in the NFL who believe he may have done just that), then his role in the controversy is certainly questionable.

Here's the full interview Armen Keteyian of CBS News did with Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

The interview was carved up for the Friday night broadcast, but you might get a somewhat different perspective from viewing the interview in its entirety.

Click here for the interview that aired last night.

Incidentally, at the 2:44 mark of the interview, CBS shows a shot at three back pages from when Belichick was originally implicated in the scandal. The back page in the middle: Newsday. (Sorry, self-promotion is part of blogging. Just ask Neil Best.)

For those of you keeping score at home, that's at least one mention of Spygate in 28 of the last 30 posts.

Have a nice day.

Enjoy the Preakness.

Enjoy Mets-Yankees.

Including this post, I will have mentioned the word Spygate in 27 of my last 28 posts, dating back to Tuesday.

It's May.

It's the off-season. There are other more important matters at hand:

Willie Randolph is in danger of losing his job, even though it's only the middle of May.

Joe Girardi is scuffling with his Yankees.

Big Brown is favored to win the Preakness.

The hockey playoffs are still going on, from what I'm told.

BBiB! thinks we need to toughen up our kids in recreational sports. No more participation trophies!

And, most important of all, Jason Giambi has been wearing a gold thong trying to break out of his hitting slump. Apparently, said thong has made its way around the Yankees' clubhouse as a way of helping others start hitting.

Eeeww.

The Patriots coach, in a rare television sitdown (he almost never does one-on-ones) with CBS' Armen Keteyian, ripped Walsh as being less than a credible participant in the Spygate scandal.

Walsh said he'd often show up in street clothes to do his taping, but Belichick had tapes of Walsh wearing Patriots apparel during his taping sessions.

The Patriots coach will discuss Spygate tonight on the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric.

Belichick spoke earlier in the day with CBS reporter Armen Keteyian. The program will air from 6:30-7 p.m. eastern time.

I'm frankly somewhat surprised that Belichick is going to talk, because he has been less than forthcoming on the subject of Spygate. Evidently, he's got a few things to get off his chest now that former video employee Matt Walsh has had his say with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.).

I have a feeling Belichick will say some things that will not cast Walsh in quite the positive light that Specter put him in the other day on Capitol Hill.

Just a hunch.

Here's a mea culpa written by Boston Herald beat reporter John Tomase, who explains how and why he wrote the story on Feb. 2 that the Patriots had taped a Rams' walkthrough practice the day before the 2002 Super Bowl.

The story stoked the Spygate controversy for months, but the Patriots consistently denied a tape ever existed. Former Patriots video assistant Matt Walsh, who was at the walkthrough to set up video equipment for the game, told NFL commissioner Roger Goodell that he never taped the practice and knew of no one else who had done so.

The Herald issued a front-page apology for the incorrect story on Wednesday.

Tomase offered his personal apology today.

Boston fans don't appear to be in a very forgiving mood about the situation.

The former Rams head coach has absolved the NFL in its handling of the Spygate controversy. And in the process, he took a swipe at former Patriots video assistant Matt Walsh, who told commissioner Roger Goodell on Tuesday that he showed up at the Rams' walkthrough the day before the 2002 Super Bowl wearing Patriots clothing.

"I had the opportunity to talk to Commissioner (Roger) Goodell (Wednesday) and I was very satisfied with the NFL's efforts to investigate the situation with Matt Walsh as it related to Super Bowl XXXVI," Martz said in a statement released by the 49ers, where Martz is the offensive coordinator. "I'm very confident there was no impropriety. I believed Bill Belichick when he said there wasn't and I took that at face value.

"Let me make this clear ­ we lost to the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl because we turned the ball over three times. If there was anything obtained from our walk-thru from a casual observer that happened to be present, then that was just part of those walk-thrus and that environment. What I've said all along and what my only concerns were A): If the walk-thru was filmed or B): If it was purposely scouted for information. If so, then that is an issue that the league needs to pursue. I'm very satisfied that this was not the situation in this instance whatsoever.

"I was stunned at Matt Walsh's allegation that he was on the sideline in New England Patriots apparel during our walk-thru. I find that insulting, disturbing and a slap in the face to both our team security and NFL security, who both do outstanding jobs. I promise you that if he was on the sideline, he was not in New England Patriots apparel because he would have
been identified.

"This whole issue is based on statements made by Matt Walsh, and I think we
have to understand that.

"I'm very grateful for Commissioner Goodell to take the time to talk to me about this. It's time to put this situation behind us."

So far, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) is the only voice in Congress calling for an investigation into the NFL's handling of the Patriots' illegal taping of signals that resulted in heavy sanctions against the team last September.

And it could stay that way, unless there is an unexpected groundswell of support on the matter.

We don't suspect there will be, despite the details of the Patriots' taping program provided by former Patriots video employee Matt Walsh. He outlined the program to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on Tuesday and then again to Specter on Wednesday.

Specter left some wiggle room by saying he won't push for any hearings until his chemotherapy treatments for a recurrence of cancer are completed, which will take several months. The NFL hasn't said outright that it won't continue its own investigation, although it issued a statement yesterday saying it disagreed with Specter's call to do just that.

The league did offer a somewhat ambivalent response saying that it would "follow up."

Clearly, the details offered by Walsh are interesting, intriguing, and damaging to Belichick's situation. But the NFL has known about it for months, issued its discipline based on that knowledge, and is not about to go back and re-punish Belichick or the team.

Specter is calling for an investigation similar to the Mitchell Report on illegal substances used in baseball. But unlike that situation, there are no criminal activities associated with Spygate, so the Judiciary Committee that Specter sits on may be reluctant to get involved.

Interestingly, no one else on the committee has said a peep about Spygate, so unless something changes, Congress will sit on the sidelines until further notice.

Jeremy Green (son of former NFL coach Dennis Green) writes an interesting piece on his take on the Spygate tapes Matt Walsh surrendered to the NFL.

He said they were more of a help to "streamline" the scouting process, but that the tapes in and of themselves were of minimal value.

Former Rams running back Marshall Faulk discusses some of the revelations Matt Walsh divulged in his meetings with Roger Goodell and Sen. Arlen Specter.

So does former Steelers defensive back Rod Woodson.

Some interesting tidbits, especially from Faulk, who says he never saw Walsh at the walk-through the day before the 2002 Super Bowl.