Nov 8, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman (11) runs the ball against Washington Redskins inside linebacker Keenan Robinson (52) in the second half at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots defeated the Redskins 27-10. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman will undergo surgery for a broken bone in his left foot suffered in Sunday’s game.
Edelman was diagnosed with a broken foot during the 27-26 win against the New York Giants that improved the Patriots’ record to 9-0. He left on the final play of the first quarter and did not return.
The Patriots are hoping that Edelman still can return this season. The NFL regular season ends in seven weeks on Jan. 3. A first-round playoff bye would put the Patriots’ postseason opener nine weeks away, the weekend of Jan. 16-17.
Edelman made a 12-yard catch-and-run on third-and-4 and came up limping at the end of the play after he was tackled by Giants linebacker Jasper Brinkley.
Edelman has 61 receptions for 692 yards and seven touchdowns this season, second on the team to tight end Rob Gronkowski’s eight, and is quarterback Tom Brady’s favorite target.
Running back Dion Lewis was lost for the season the previous week after suffering a torn ACL. Now with Edelman out, the Patriots have lost two players who accounted for nearly 40 percent of the their receptions this year, according to ESPN.
Brady said Monday that the Patriots will find ways to adapt after Edelman’s injury.
“That’s just the way it is,” Brady said on “Dennis and Callahan” on WEEI in Boston. “There’s nothing that’s really seamless when you lose a great player. When it’s someone that’s been the leading receiver on your team for multiple years and you lose them, it’s not like you go, ‘OK, well, let just put someone else in.’
“He’s too good of a player for that. You’ve just got to kind of find your way to make some adjustments. I think we just made some critical plays when we needed to, which was really important down the stretch, certainly defensively, and special teams we did. And on offense I thought we just did enough.”
Without Edelman in the second half, the Patriots had problems moving the ball. On the game’s final drive, Brady was rattled by the Giants’ pass rush but was able to get New England into field-goal range.
Wide receiver Danny Amendola stepped up and had a season-high 10 catches for 79 yards and a 72-yard punt return Sunday. Amendola caught three passes on the final drive, including a fourth-down conversion and the pass that set up Stephen Gostkowski’s game-winning field goal.
