I'm not going to wax poetic on the importance of special teams in the NFL, I'll leave that to overzealous coaches and analysts but I can admit that in recent years I've come to appreciate those jobs much more than ever before. On the surface, it seems like any jamoke can play on special teams, how tough can it be? However, when you see someone that is really good at it-like Patriots captain Matthew Slater-you realize the world of difference it can make.
That's why news of Slater's broken wrist is another tough blow for the Patriots (2-0) who have been ravaged with injuries already this season (Rob Gronkowski, Shane Vereen, Danny Amendola). Like Vereen, Slater is expected to miss four to six weeks. I guess we'll have to see how they stash him on the roster since Vereen was put on IR with that new designation to return after eight weeks. I'm not sure if you can use that on more than one player.
Regardless, mercy! On the one hand, New England has really benefited from their early schedule by playing the Sisters of the Poor (Bills and Jets) and now the Bucs (0-2) who are Team Turmoil come to Gillette Stadium on Sunday afternoon (1, FOX). However we've seen what the injuries to the Vereen and Amendola left Tom Brady to "work" with vs. the Jets last Thursday.
The son of NFL Hall of Famer offensive lineman Jackie Slater, Matthew has made the Pro Bowl twice for special teams with the Pats and he's an underrated leader on the team because he often has to work with more different players than most (since special teams guys are on the bottom of the roster so there is constant shuffling).
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