Graham not hurt by sitting

FOXBOROUGH -- Earlier this season, in an effort to comply with team policy and avoid discussing injuries, tight end Daniel Graham joked that the reason he missed a game was because he was holding out.

Yesterday, coach Bill Belichick said Graham was indeed a holdout of Monday's game against the Jets, and a healthy holdout at that.

According to Belichick, none of the players listed as inactive for the game sat out because of injury. Their ''benchings" were all coaches' decisions.

''Whichever players were inactive last week, they were inactive," Belichick said. ''It wasn't because of any medical reason. It was because of decisions that either I made or the coaching staff made, however you want to put it. That's why those decisions were made."

With an allegedly healthy Graham on the sidelines, tackle Tom Ashworth started at tight end, along with Benjamin Watson and Christian Fauria, and linebacker Mike Vrabel was in for several goal-line plays at tight end, catching two touchdown passes from Tom Brady.

Belichick's position on sitting Graham is probably related to the Patriots' injury report from last week, which listed only Brady (probable, shoulder). As it has done in the past, the NFL would fine the team if the league's injury report policy were not adhered to. By not listing Graham on the report last week (he was put on this week's report as probable with a shoulder problem), the Patriots would come under fire if he sat out of the game because of an injury.

Graham didn't seem too concerned about his non-playing status. He reiterated his season-long stance that everything on his body hurts, and said he is ''looking forward to playing again soon."

Eight players who were on the injury report the last time there was more than one name on it, reappeared on the list yesterday, though receiver Bethel Johnson (knee) and cornerback Asante Samuel (head) returned with new ailments suffered against the Jets. All the injured players are listed as probable, except for Tedy Bruschi, who is questionable with a calf injury.

New to the list are Fauria (foot) and defensive end Jarvis Green (shoulder).

McGinest takes honor

In his 12th season, linebacker Willie McGinest just keeps chugging along.

Yesterday, Shaw's presented McGinest with the annual 12th Player Award, designated for the player who personifies the Patriots' team spirit in contributions on and off the field. Troy Brown (2004), Dan Klecko (2003), Adam Vinatieri (2002), and Brady (2001) are the most recent 12th Player honorees.

McGinest, who has 78 1/2 career sacks and needs one to tie Julius Adams for second on the Patriots' all-time list, is among the team leaders in snaps played this season.

''He's a role player and his role is to play every snap," Belichick said. ''His role is to play every down. First down. Second down. Third down. Short yardage. Long yardage. Running situations. Passing situations. Goal line. Prevent. End of the game. He's in on everything."

Belichick said the team planned to scale back McGinest this season -- the free agent signing of Chad Brown and return to health of Rosevelt Colvin should have led to that -- but as the season went on, it became clear that McGinest needed to be on the field.

Even when he broke a bone in his right hand against Atlanta, McGinest did not leave the lineup. Belichick discussed moving him to the opposite side, so that his injured hand would be away from the traffic, but McGinest elected not to make the move.

''I think he has shown a lot of toughness this year playing with the cast on his hand for the better part of the season; that's hard," Belichick said. ''He felt like he could deal with it, and he played through it and he did and played well."

Business as usual

Belichick said the team will approach the week of preparation like any other short week (because of playing on Monday night). No starters who are healthy will sit out the game, despite its relative lack of meaning. The Patriots will host a playoff game the following week, then would travel to Denver or Indianapolis for the divisional round. ''We'll deal with it when we get to the game," Belichick said of Sunday's regular-season finale. ''I don't know how the game's going to go, or what's going to happen." . . . The Patriots had cornerback Willie Middlebrooks, a former first-round pick of the Broncos, in for a workout Tuesday.