Wes Welker Grittiness Seemingly Unaffected By Injury

Appearing in game action for the first time since suffering a season-ending tear to his ACL and MCL in the 2009 regular season finale, Wes Welker was targeted on three consecutive snaps by Tom Brady on the Patriots opening drive of their preseason game against the Falcons.

The result: two catches for 20 yards and a wake-up call on a bubble screen. On the first catch, it was his usual act of sitting underneath the coverage. The next play, had Brady not forced his to reach across his body for the catch, Welker might have continued to streak for big yardage. Third pass didn't have as pretty a result, but the guy is gonna have to get used to that kind of contact against some point.

Considering that Welker even dressing for the game came as a surprise should mean the Patriots have a lot to feel good about with regards to one of the key components of their offense.