Patriots fret over lead role

Bledsoe took a hit in the second game of the season against the New York Jets in September, which looked innocuous enough but it led to a severed blood vessel in his chest which required two blood transfusions totalling 14 pints to resolve. When Brady arrived at New England two seasons ago it was as a relatively lowly choice in the NFL draft of college football talent and he became fourth-choice quarterback for the Patriots, firmly in No1 Bledsoe's shadow.

It didn't seem to bother him, particularly as he had to struggle for recognition as a college quarterback at Michigan, and in pre-season this year he often had the confidence to give Bledsoe the benefit of his knowledge on strategy.

His team-mates thought the 6ft 4in Brady was a bit lightweight at 14st 6lbs but he's since gone up to 15st 10lbs and they now know he's no lightweight when it comes to running the team on the field. He's loud and proud.

But on Sunday, at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field, it looked as though his season was over when he was tackled low by the Steelers and went over on his ankle. He limped off and out of the game and Bledsoe took his chance on his return after all those months out, guiding the Patriots to a 24-17 win over the Steelers.

Brady watched from the sidelines for the rest of the game, urging Bled-soe on and held his breath along with the rest of the Patriots, as Bledsoe took an identical hit to the one which sidelined him earlier in the season. But Bledsoe was okay.

So, with the Patriots arrival here yesterday to prepare for the Super Bowl against the Rams, head coach Belichick will have to face the same question over and over again from close on 3,000 media people: "Who will be your starting quarterback?"

After the Steelers game, Brady maintained he would be fit in time and Bledsoe said he was ready to start.

Once he has sorted that out, Belichick will have a fresh headache to get rid of. This is the third time the Patriots have reached the Super Bowl in their 36-year history and all three times they have travelled to the Louisiana Superdome to play in it, despite the fact that the showpiece game has been liberally sprinkled all over the United States in other years.

They lost the first two, to the Pack-ers in 1997 and the Chicago Bears in 1986, and whoever the first choice is on the day must get the job done to avoid an unwanted hat-trick.