Week One Pats at Titans Injury Update: Vereen Out
The Pats released their league mandated injury report on Friday and RB Shane Vereen has already been ruled out. Vereen has missed seven consecutive practices with a foot injury. Last year Vereen appeared in only five games with just fifteen carries due to a hamstring injury. I suppose the one positive to take away from all this is that Bill Belichick must think he will be healthy relatively soon; he used the new in-season injured reserve spot on Visanthe Shiancoe rather than Vereen. That being said, you have to wonder how long it will be before Vereen replaces Ras-I Dowling as the player receiving the annual wrath of Pats fans for being 'made of glass' or is compared to Shawn Crable.
Not that much should ever be made of Bill Belichick's injury report with the exception of that "out" designation, but it would have been nice to see RT Sebastian Vollmer absent from this list, or at least under the heading of Probable rather then Questionable. In the space of six weeks Marcus Cannon went from being considered the steal of the 2011 draft to a reincarnation of Terry O'Reilly struggling to skate back in his rookie year with the Boston Bruins four decades ago. The other option is Nick McDonald but he is questionable as well with a sore shoulder. Because of his size McDonald is far better suited to play inside rather than tackle; the fact that he is even considered to be an option at tackle speaks volumes about the lack of quality depth at the position.
Others listed as questionable on the injury report are CB Sterling Moore (knee), CB Alfonzo Dennard (hamstring) and TE Daniel Fells (shin); S Patrick Chung (shoulder) is probable. Since the Pats kept six corners on the roster they would still be all set at the position if Moore and Dennard cannot play, with Dowling, Devin McCourty, Kyle Arrington and Marquice Cole available. Should Fells not be available then newly acquired Michael Hoomanawanui could make his first appearance with the pats if Bill Belichick elects to go with three tight ends on the game day roster. Which offensive linemen are included on that game day roster could become interesting considering Vollmer and Cannon's physical conditions coupled with Cannon's struggles this pre season - and of course the absence of RG Brian Waters.
Happy Birthday to Chrissie Hynde, though I'm guessing that she doesn't want to be reminded that she is now 61. I had the pleasure of seeing The Pretenders at some club that I can't remember the name of in Providence probably in about 1980 or so, before they were well known. Incredible energy, great performance ... and a mouth on her that would make a sailor blush.
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