Josh McDaniels: James White will get more opportunities

In other words, Lewis should be the definition of a replaceable player.

Meanwhile, Patriots running back Dion Lewis suffered a knee injury during the game which may turn out to be bad news for the team which has so far remained on top of the rankings in 2015, according to the Boston Herald.

The New England Patriots quarterback posted a quick thank you to all veterans who "keep my family safe" in a post Wednesday. Cadet just recently signed in San Francisco, making White the leading candidate to replace Lewis.

Lewis, a 25-year old product of Albany, came to the Patriots this season after stays with the Eagles, Browns and Colts and injected life into the New England running game. Tom Brady threw an uncharacteristic interception, Julian Edelman was stripped, Dion Lewis went down with a season-ending knee injury and the unit looked out of sync. Dion Lewis finished at 165.2.

The Washington Redskins posted a franchise record comeback in their last game. The injury to Lewis is tough, and perhaps we won't know how it will affect this team until the season comes to a close. The guy had sucked before this season and there is no way around that. Gronkowski was used in the backfield a lot, which helped him get a free release off the line of scrimmage.

While in other seasons the team could count on having home field locked up and meaningless games to end the year, this year they could be playing through full strength to Week 17. Coincidence? I think not.

I am in no way denying that Lewis' contributions to the team have been extremely impressive and valuable, but the Belichick's system revolves around the dispensability of the pass-catching running backs.

In the one game that Lewis missed this year due to injury - Week 7 against the NY Jets - the Patriots chose to abandon the run altogether against New York's impenetrable front seven. That's excellent for a running back.

Patriots running back James White has just 16 carries in his brief National Football League career. We didn't get our run game going. He's slippery in the open field and can dodge defenders. About once per game, Lewis was targeted running at a linebacker and breaking the route inward.

If you look at the box score of yesterday's game, you'll see that LeGarrette Blount was given the first crack at the ball after Lewis went down, and he accrued 12 of the 17 running back opportunities (attempts plus targets) from that point on.

Patriot fans don't just love how good Brady, Gronk and Edelman are on the field, but they obsess over their personalities and off-field routines.