FOXBORO - Matt Light shed little light on the reason he was unable to go Saturday against the Dolphins but did say his injured leg is improving. "We're getting there buddy," Light said Tuesday afternoon in the Patriots locker room when asked how his leg was doing. "Just wasn't able to go the other day. Unfortunately. And it's a rough deal, you know. Gameday. Making that decision. We'll work this week and get back out there but it's feeling better."The nature of the injury and when Light sustained it is still unclear.He had praise, however, for the players shuffled to make up for his absence. "I think those guys all fought hard," Light said. "To come back in the second half that way and battle back, and get a win, that was a heck of an effort. We have a lot of things we have to correct, and there's always a lot of things we have to do better. But those guys did a great job out there. Of course, guys stepping up and playing positions they hadn't practiced, and going through plays they haven't run -- maybe at all in some cases -- it's not an easy task." It was especially hard for the subs for both Light and left guard Logan Mankins given the short week they were working on and the lack of practice reps backups get during the week. "It was a short week anyway, relatively, and there are only so many things you can rep out there in practice," Light explained. "You want your guys that are going to be playing in the game to take most of those. A lot of times these guys that are in the backup position, that come in and out of the game, they're not going to get those reps. So it comes down to the film room and understanding the plays, and the concepts and what we do, and doing it mentally for the most part." As for Mankins, Light said he spent hours in meetings with him on Tuesday.
"He's a tough guy," Light said."He's a guy that's never missed a practice or a game...but I'm sure the cowboy will ride again. His Fu Manchu still looks pretty good."Light also spoke about the presentation the team made to owner Robert Kraft after Saturday's game. "You realize off the field how much it means to the Kraft family to represent yourself in a certain way and live your life in acertain way and keep family at the top of the list," said Light."I think a lot of times you forget about it in the day-to-day hustle and bustle and I think to each guy in this locker room we wanted to tellMr. Kraftand his family we understand this has been a tough year. We wanted to commemorate something that was one of a kind that was special that (symbolized) what we dedicated the season to."