Belichick deflected all inquiries regarding details of Brady's injury, but based on the need for season-ending surgery, it's most likely an anterior cruciate ligament injury, with possible damage to the medial collateral ligament and cartilage in the knee.
"I feel badly for Tom," said Belichick, who has gone 87-24 during the regular season with Brady as his starter. "Nobody has worked harder at football and meant more to this team than Tom has since I've been here. So, I feel badly for Tom."
But there was no time for the rest of the team to bemoan its fate.
"Injuries are a part of the game," said defensive end Richard Seymour. "It's a tough break, especially from the quarterback position because they have the ball in their hands 90 percent of the time, and a lot of the decision-making comes through them. He's done a great job for us, to say the least, Tom has, for the past several years.
"But it isn't like we're going to tank it. That's not going to happen. We won't accept any excuses. We always feel like there is a way to win. We just have to find a way. That's something that we were able to do [Sunday], and we will have to continue to do."
The team's statement was not specific, saying simply, "After extensive tests, it was revealed that New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's left knee, which was injured in the first quarter of yesterday's game, will require surgery. He will be placed on injured reserve and will miss the remainder of the 2008 season."
When Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer suffered a left knee injury in an almost identical manner during a playoff game on Jan. 8, 2006, he tore the ACL and MCL, damaged cartilage, and dislocated his kneecap. Dr. Lonnie Paulos, who operated on Palmer, agreed there was similar trauma.
