FOXBOROUGH — Still in his game pants, Patriots safety Terrence Brooks sat in the chair facing his locker and stared straight ahead.
To his left, fellow defensive backs Devin and Jason McCourty had already showered and started getting dressed. Elsewhere in the quiet locker room, rookie defensive end Chase Winovich had tied back his bleached platinum blonde locks. Kicker Stephen Gostkowski, who was placed on injured reserve after Week 4, stopped to chat with linebacker Kyle Van Noy on his way out. Wide receiver Julian Edelman was nowhere to be found.
But Brooks, with eye black smudged on his cheeks, lingered.