Hours Before Kickoff: Week 9

Life ain't fair. As the Patriots lose player after player to injury, the Indianapolis Colts are getting healthy.

RBs Sammy Morris and LaMont Jordan will miss their second game in a row while Indy's Joseph Addai likely returns.

The leader of the Colts defense, S Bob Sanders, will be back as well. After an inspired performance slowing down the Tennessee ground game on Monday night, Indianapolis' difference-maker is back in the lineup. We already know Rodney Harrison is done for the year.

The sight of CB Ellis Hobbs walking off the field with his left arm dangling after defensing a deep pass late against St. Louis still haunts me. You hate seeing a gutsy player unable to will himself through another play. Even scarier was the fact that Deltha O'Neal, who suffered a concussion earlier in the game, had to come back in for the ailing Hobbs. It's great that O'Neal was heady enough to make the game-sealing interception, but O'Neal might not of had the sense to know his own name at the time. Hobbs didn't practice this week, and neither did reserve DB Lewis Sanders. The Colts on the other hand exchange corners, as Marlin Jackson was placed on IR while Kelvin Hayden appears ready to return to action.

We can take this even deeper. QB Peyton Manning had more than one knee surgery this year. So did Tom Brady. The difference: Manning had his in the off-season while Brady had his most recent procedure done about a week ago.

Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if the flu ravaged Pats fans as Colts acolytes bounced back from a bout with a cold. It's everywhere!

But there's no sympathy in sports. If there's a weakness due to injury, opponents will attack it to see if they can take advantage of it. And if they're successful, they'll go after it over and over. New England's secondary will be in the cross-hairs tonight. I don't know how far down the depth chart the coaches will go, but this will be a baptism by fire for rookie CBs Jonathan Wilhite and Terrence Wheatley. They couldn't of imagined a tougher assignment.

WRs Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison, and Anthony Gonzalez aren't the biggest or the fastest, but are very quick with great hands. But what makes them special is the chemistry they built with Manning. They know what each other are thinking and their timing is impeccable. Manning isn't having his typical season and Harrison is slowing down, but they are a better combination than 95 percent of of the QB-WR combos in the league.

The Indianapolis defense could be a problem as well. New England's saving grace would had been if they could run over the small Indy front. Well if the Titans had their problems last week, and that's the fourth ranked rushing offense, then the Pats have a daunting task ahead of them.

A few things I'm looking for:

Clamps on Clark - Dallas Clark is one of the best receiving tight ends in the league. It used to be Rodney Harrison that drew that assignment. He can't from IR, and his fill-in, Lewis Sanders, is out for the game as well. So who covers Clark now?

It Was All a Blurr -It's possible QB Matt Cassel hasn't seen this much speed on one team. For a young passer, it could make his head spin. Maybe it takes a few series for Cassel to get comfortable, but the game has to slow down for him.

Back-ups Against the Wall -The reserves will be called upon to perform well now: CBs Mike Richardson, Jonathan Wilhite, Terrence Wheatley, safetys Ray Ventrone and Antwain Spaan, RB BenJarvis Green-Ellis, and others have to play like pros, not neophytes.

The Patriots are too short-handed to handle a Colts team determined to bounce back from a tough divisional loss. New England will be game for the most part, but the inexperience will catch up to them.