FOXBORO, Mass. — Count right guard Brian Waters among those who were impressed by Matt Light's resilience during the Patriots' game-winning drive Sunday against the Cowboys.
Light dropped to the ground in pain during Tom Brady's quarterback sneak for a first down, and the left tackle appeared to injure his right ankle. After clutching his lower leg in pain for a moment, Light got back on his feet and hobbled back to the line. If he stayed on the ground, the Patriots would have lost their last timeout and would have been forced to substitute for Light, despite the fact that they didn't have a backup tackle on the bench.
Light struggled while blocking outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware in a one-on-one assignment on the next play, and he got help from left guard Logan Mankins on the next two plays.
If Light, who didn't practice Tuesday or Wednesday, pulled himself out of the game, the Patriots would have had an exponentially more difficult time trying to score that game-winning touchdown. His toughness was certainly not lost on Waters, who was also impressed by the way his new teammates handled an adverse situation against the Cowboys.
"I actually saw him get rolled up on the quarterback sneak," Waters said Wednesday. "I saw him getting up very slowly, but he did a great job of surviving. That's one of those things — when your adrenaline is pumping, you're doing what you need to do. The one thing that I've found out about these guys, they're all fighters. That's something that showed up. It was very evident in that situation."
