Wide receiver David Terrell will be able to walk without a boot to protect his injured right foot in about two weeks.
Terrell realistically could return for the Monday night game Dec. 9 at Miami, possibly a week sooner. In the meantime, he is hoping for a reversal of fortune that could make his return to the lineup mean something.
“I just want us to get some wins so that when I do come back it’ll be in our corner,” Terrell said. “Right now I’m concentrating on rehabbing, watching film and helping. We’ve got to run the board. We’ve got to stop looking at all these six-in-a-row losses and start looking at getting eight in a row winning.”
It might make more sense for Terrell to sit out the rest of the season, but he isn’t seeing it.
“If we were 0-9, 0-10, no possibility [of the playoffs], then there’s no reason for me to come back,” he said. “Just a waste to come back for four games or five games. But we’re thinking about getting to the playoffs.”
New experience
Jim Miller has never faced the New England Patriots in his career. He was on injured reserve with a torn Achilles’ tendon in 2000 when Shane Matthews directed the Bears to a 24-17 win over the Pats.
Chris Chandler was a member of the Atlanta Falcons when the Patriots mauled him last season, sacking him six times, limiting him to eight completions in 20 throws and sending him out of the game with a third-quarter rib injury that sidelined him the following week.
Chandler defeated the Patriots in other two career meetings, in Atlanta’s Super Bowl season of 1998 and as a rookie with the Indianapolis Colts in 1988. That was five years before any of the current Patriots joined the team.
Keeping perspective
Rookie Alex Brown has played his way into a job as a starting defensive end. He had nine tackles Sunday to lead all defensive linemen. But defensive coordinator Greg Blache isn’t about to let the rookie get a big head.
Asked if he were surprised by Brown’s development, Blache was direct.
“No,” he said. “Disappointed. I was hoping he’d have four or five sacks by now. He played better but he’s got a chance to start, he’s got a chance to be a star in this league.
“I’d like to see him step up and make more plays. He made some plays Sunday, but I hope he’s not satisfied. I hope he’s hungry and realizes he’s just starting to scratch the surface of what he’s capable of being.”
No guarantees
Coach Dick Jauron’s good friend Dick LeBeau, coach of the Cincinnati Bengals, was reported to have guaranteed that his Bengals would defeat the Houston Texans, coached by friend Dom Capers. Not so, Jauron said.
“My understanding was Dick LeBeau guaranteed he could beat Dom Capers in golf,” Jauron corrected. “Isn’t that what he said? I saw Dick on television and he said it was misconstrued. He said somebody asked him if he could beat Dom Capers in golf and he said, `I guarantee you I can beat Dom in golf.'”
Would Jauron care to make any guarantees at this point in a 2-6 season? Could he guarantee he could beat Patriots coach Bill Belichick? “I’ll guarantee you that Dick LeBeau can beat Dom Capers in golf,” Jauron ventured.
Losing side
Left guard Mike Gandy paid a heavy price for his alma mater Notre Dame’s loss to Marc Colombo’s Boston College. “I have to take him out to dinner,” Gandy said, shaking his head. “And the next TV interview I do, I have to wear something from BC.”
