Aaron Hernandez Injury: Patriots Offense Will Suffer Without Versatile TE

It is easy to look at New England's offense as a well-oiled machine that can just plug anyone into the system and it will still put up video game numbers, but Tom Brady has built a rapport with every receiver on the roster, and now he will have to play at least one game without star tight end Aaron Hernandez.

According to Ian Rapoport of the Boston Herald, Hernandez will be out for at least one week after suffering a sprained MCL in his left knee in the fourth quarter of the Patriots' win over San Diego on Sunday.

This is a major injury that is going to hurt Brady and the flow of the entire offense. No team in the NFL runs as many two-tight end sets as the Patriots. No team in the league has been able to stop them in those formations in the last two seasons.

Plus, Hernandez's versatility is something that can't be replaced by any other tight end on the roster or on the free-agent market. Bill Belichick loves to line Hernandez up in the slot against a linebacker and turn him loose down the field for big plays.

And now the Patriots have to go at least one week without him.

It's not like the offense is going to fall off the face of the earth without him because Brady is so good and includes so many receivers in the offense, but it will not be nearly as dynamic as we are accustomed to seeing.

Brady's numbers are going to drop without Hernandez. The offense won't score as many points as it has in the first two weeks of the season and the defense is going to have to make more stops than it has proven capable of so far this season.

Brady is the heart and soul of the offense, but Hernandez and fellow tight end Rob Gronkowski are the muscles that make the offense stronger than any other offense in the NFL. Take one of them away, and the body will not function properly.