Runningback Fred Taylor to have surgery

The Patriots' depth at runningback will be tested after news broke this afternoon that the team's leading rusher so far, Fred Taylor, has to have surgery on his right ankle and may miss the rest of the season. According to Chris Gasper on the Globe's Extra Points blog:Taylor sustained an eversion ankle sprain -- meaning he rolled his ankle to the outside -- on his final carry in the Patriots' 27-21 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Taylor, who finished the game with seven carries for 25 yards, hobbled to the sideline following the 3-yard run with under five minutes left in the fourth quarter.I think most of us in the stands, particularly on the third deck, were too busy at that point completely losing our minds about what happened in the last five minutes of that game to notice Taylor leave. It's football. Injuries happen, and the next man has to step up. But this might be the worst-case scenario for the Patriots at this particular point in the season. Taylor is far and away the team's leading rusher--in fact, at 201 yards on the season so far, he's the only one in triple digits.