Shalise Manza Young of the Boston Globe reports that Kevin Faulk is done for the year with a torn ACL. The play on which it happened looked innocent enough but the most dreaded of all knee injuries was apparently the result.

Where do we go from here? The Patriots are already thin at running back, and Faulk is the most valuable of them all. His blocking and pass catching skill are integral to the spread offense, not to mention the veteran leadership that he brought as a captain.

No way around it, this is a tough blow to the Pats. The season is a battle of attrition and the Patriots have been hit hard in 2010 by injuries, already having lost three vital members of their team before week three.

No excuses though, Faulk will be missed but this loss will force the Patriots to evolve how they do things on offense and that isn’t always a bad thing. Perhaps new addition Danny Woodhead will be able to contribute as a pass catching running back, or maybe it will be Julian Edelman. 

There are fourteen more battles to be fought in the 2010 campaign, the Pats must find a way to get it done without Faulk. With injuries come opportunities for other players, and those other players must step up. Sometimes that’s how you find your next star player.