BOSTON'S MOUNT RUSHMORE

One of ESPN's new features is a state-by-state "Mount Rushmore of Sports" debate in which fans can decide on who would make their state's monument. The Boston sports scene is one of the hardest to do because so many superstar athletes have passed through this town, and each brought something different to the table. But if I had to pick the four faces for Boston's Mount Rushmore of Sports, they would be:

Ted Williams
You can't have a Mount Rushmore for Boston sports without "the greatest hitter who ever lived." The Splendid Splinter hit 521 homers for the Red Sox in 19 seasons, and averaged 130 RBI per year. A two-time American League MVP, Williams is the last player to hit over .400, hitting .406 in 1941.

Red Auerbach
With respect to Bill Russell and Larry Bird, who each could have made this list in their own right, I'm going with the man who signed both of them, Red Auerbach. Red coached the Celtics from 1950 through 1965 (and stayed on as GM for many more years), and won NBA Championships in eight straight years (1958-65). Quite simply, the Celtics have won more NBA Titles than any other franchise, and you don't have that unbelievable history without Red Auerbach.

Tom Brady
The Patriots sixth round pick in 2000, Brady took over for an injured Drew Bledsoe in just his second season in the league and turned the New England franchise around. A career record of 86-24 in the regular season and 14-3 in the playoffs makes Brady the most important player in team history. He is a three time Super Bowl Champion, a two-time Super Bowl MVP, and has the NFL record for touchdown passes in a single season with 50. Brady has a career passer rating of 92.9 and won nine playoff games in his first five seasons, the most of any starting quarterback in his first five seasons in NFL history.

Bobby Orr
Considered by many to be the greatest player to ever lace up skates, Orr forever changed the way the game was played. Despite only playing 10 seasons in Boston (12 in his career), Orr won eight Norris Trophies as the league's top defenseman, was a two-time Hart winner (League MVP), and a two-time Conn Smythe winner as the playoff MVP. He won two Stanley Cups with the Bruins, was a nine-time All-Star, and his 120 points in 1970-71 was unheard of for a defenseman. He is perhaps best remembered for his game winning goal in overtime of the 1970 Stanley Cup Finals against the St. Louis Blues.

BRADY HAS MORE KNEE COMPLICATIONS

This story was first reported by Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald. She writes:

"Doctors are so concerned about containing the infection in Tom Brady's left knee they have performed three procedures in an attempt to eradicate it, according to a source familiar with the Patriots quarterback's travails on the West Coast."

It had already been announced by Brady via his website last Wednesday that he underwent a second surgery on his left knee to "clean and to test the wound". This was necessary because of an infection in the knee.

So with today's Herald report, that brings the Brady knee surgery count to FOUR. I'm not a doctor - nor did I stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night - but from what I gather this knee injury has turned into a bonafide disaster. Brady is now on IV antibiotics and will remain on them for six weeks. Here are the two scenarios that could play out:

1) The follow-up surgeries are a success, the infection is eliminated, and Brady rehabs his knee as normal - with a possible slight delay from all the extra work done. Should be ready to play by, let's say, May-June.

2) The infection lingers and compromises the new ACL grafted to Brady's knee. The original ACL surgery will have to be redone - but not until after the entire infection is eliminated. It's possible that this would delay the surgery until January, in which case it would put Brady's 2009 season in jeopardy.

The hope right now is for #1. It's possible that these follow-up surgeries are more precautionary than anything, and are merely to fight the infection in the most effective way possible. Regardless, this surgery has not gone as planned - the Patriots have begun to voice their dissatisfaction with Brady's choice to go with his own doctor instead of one suggested by the team - and all we can do at this point is worry until our hair falls out... and hope for the best. Or else we might see Bob Lobel and his panic button return to Sports Final in the near future.

BRADY UNDERGOES SECOND KNEE SURGERY

New England Patriots starting quarterback Tom Brady had a second surgery on his left knee on Wednesday to clear out an infection. Brady, who tore his ACL and MCL when he was hit by Kansas City Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard in the first quarter of week one, had the first procedure done on October 6.

Hopefully, this won't hold Brady out for any additional time. While he is already on Injured Reserve, and thus done for the season, any further problems with the knee could delay his return into next season. That would be disastrous as the Pats, a team that scored an NFL record 589 points one season ago are really struggling to move the ball with backup Matt Cassel under center. New England is averaging only 17.8 points per game, down over 50% from last year's prolific offense that scored nearly 37 points per contest.

Despite the second surgery, Brady is expected to be ready for training camp for the 2009 NFL season. Hopefully we'll see the old Tom Brady next September.