"I know no team out there is feeling sorry for us, so we've got to go out there and be ready to play."
That will be the case tomorrow when the Patriots line up without Harrison against the St. Louis Rams, who opened the season 0-4 under former coach Scott Linehan but have caught a spark under interim coach Jim Haslett by winning back-to-back games against the Washington Redskins (19-17) and Dallas Cowboys (34-14).
At no time did Sanders, a fourth-year veteran out of Fresno State, place an inordinate amount of pressure on himself to fill the void left by Harrison's season-ending injury.
"We just all got to do our jobs," he said. "No one can replace Rodney. We just got to go out there and play hard and lead by example, and that's when we're out there each and every day in practice, playing 100 miles per hour, and getting ready for the games on Sunday."
This is not a new experience for Sanders, who stepped in two years ago when Harrison went down with a broken scapula against the Colts. Sanders started five of the six games Harrison missed, making an interception for 21 yards against Houston.
Harrison returned in the regular-season finale against Tennessee only to suffer a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee when he was laid low by a cut block from receiver Bobby Wade. Sanders entered the fray in the postseason and started all three games, making 17 total tackles (12 solo), including a sack for 10 yards.
Last year, Sanders settled into the free safety spot opposite Harrison and established career highs in tackles (73), solos (60), interceptions (2), passes defensed (5), and special teams tackles (5) while making a career-high 15 starts.
He will enter the St. Louis game as the team's No. 5 tackler with 25 (17 solo).
"James has come a long way as a player," coach Bill Belichick said. "He improved as a rookie [in 2005], but I think he dramatically improved after his second year after the Denver game in his communication and his understanding of the passing game.
