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Vince Wilfork, who underwent surgery on his Achilles tendon on Tuesday, released the following statement via his Twitter account:

I just want to thank everyone for your support and encouragement. ... Please know your words are heard. Bianca [Wilfork's wife] is making sure I see all the comments. I wish I could respond to everyone. But please know your words are heard.

One thing I know is I signed up to play football. I don't regret anything that has happened and there is no need to feel sorry about it. I've been blessed to only have one surgery prior to today and that was in high school.

I know what signing up to play football means and I know the rewards and risks. This is my job and I will switch positions for now and play the role of patient, but that is only temporary. I have so much confidence in our team and know that they will do great and I will be right beside them maybe not in uniform but in all other ways.

Thanks again.

DAVIE, Fla. -- The sting from Monday’s 38-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints remained with the Miami Dolphins a day later. But Miami's offensive line, in particular, wasn’t thrilled by recent comments made by Saints outside linebacker Junior Galette.

Following Monday’s game, Galette ripped Miami’s big men up front, using words such as “weak” and “abused” to describe the Dolphins’ offensive linemen. The Saints' defense forced four turnovers and had four sacks in the win. Galette has two tackles and a sack.

“He didn’t really do much,” Dolphins center Mike Pouncey scoffed. “Anybody can go and say what they did. But the film don’t lie. It’s simple. ... I guess he’s the best defensive player in the NFL.”

Jonathan Martin, Miami’s left tackle, said he won’t think twice about Galette unless the two teams play again this season in the Super Bowl.

“I don’t care what he says,” Martin said bluntly.

Things became chippy between Miami's offense and New Orleans' defense in the second half. That’s when Galette claimed Monday night that the Dolphins’ offensive line began trash talking when they were down by 25 points.

Pouncey and Martin have a different recollection of the events.

“He started the trash talk. So that’s on him,” Martin said.

Added Pouncey: “They didn’t start trash-talking until they were up 25. So what’s the difference? That’s not part of our game. We’re not trash talkers. We’re just playing football. Guys don’t like when you play through the whistle.”

Either way, Miami did lose the battle of the trenches Monday and must improve. However, Galette could have been much classier in victory.

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Buffalo Bills safety Jairus Byrd fully participated in Tuesday's practice, the team's only session of the week before playing Thursday night against the Cleveland Browns.

Byrd had been listed as limited in practice for the first four weeks of the season. The Pro Bowl safety has plantar fasciitis, a foot condition.

"We're definitely getting better and we're getting real close," coach Doug Marrone said Tuesday.

Byrd said Tuesday that he "got some work with the defense," which likely led to his status being upgraded.

However, he remained a member of the scout team during the defensive backs' walk-through, the only portion of practice open to his media Tuesday. In his place, Jim Leonhard and Da'Norris Searcy continued to line up at safety.

Marrone said a decision will be made Wednesday on if Byrd plays Thursday night, and after the team returns from their weekend off, he will likely be considered "day-to-day."

Byrd said last month that he played with the foot condition last season, but wants to be fully healthy before playing this season, despite numerous injuries to the Bills' secondary.

"Any time you want to be out there to play this game, this is your job, so you want to play this game," Byrd said Tuesday.

During the interview, Byrd pointed to foot inserts in his locker that he said have improved his condition since last week.

"I just got some really nice, expensive orthotics made last week," he said. "It's helping a lot. Shout-out to the training staff on that."

The Patriots re-signed veteran cornerback Marquice Cole on Tuesday. Also, rookie safety Kanorris Davis cleared waivers after being waived Monday and is expected to be re-signed to the team's practice squad.

The moves are related, as Davis had been promoted to the active roster on Saturday, mainly to fill Cole's special-teams duties. Cole had injured his hamstring and wasn't available for Sunday night's 30-23 win over the Atlanta Falcons, which led to his release last Friday.

On Sunday, Davis played on each of the "Big 4" special-teams units -- kickoff return, kickoff coverage, punt return and punt coverage. He had one penalty, for illegal formation.

The Patriots don't have to release a player to make room for Cole, as they had an open spot on their 53-man roster after waiving Davis on Monday. The team also has an open spot on its practice squad.

A weekly examination of the Patriots’ ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 6 | Last Week: 5 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

The Patriots' No. 4 ranking represents their highest spot of the year. They've been as low as seventh.

When looking closer at the voting breakdown, it came down to the Patriots and Saints for the No. 4 spot, with New Orleans getting one more third-place vote to barely edge New England.

If things hold true this week -- the Patriots hit the road to face the Bengals, while the Saints visit the Bears -- it will set up a potential No. 3 versus No. 4 matchup between the Patriots and Saints on Oct. 13 at Gillette Stadium. If the weather cooperates, that could turn out to be a true gem, because from this viewpoint, there's not much better than high-level NFL football played on a perfect New England day.

But that's getting ahead of ourselves.

First up for the Patriots is a test against the Bengals, who dropped from sixth to 11th in ESPN's Power Rankings.

As for the No. 1 (Denver) and No. 2 (Seattle) teams in the Power Rankings, no arguments here. They deserve it and my sense is that most Patriots followers would agree, while also acknowledging that what the picture looks like today isn't always what we'll see when it counts in November and December.

A weekly examination of the Bills' ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 30 | Last Week: 24 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

Just a slight bump.

That was all voters gave the Bills after their win over the Baltimore Ravens, who were ranked No. 11 entering the game. Improving to 2-2, the Bills rose just one spot in the overall rankings, to No. 23.

I think they should be higher. Of teams Nos. 20-22, the Bills have lost to one (the Jets, No. 22), defeated another (the Panthers, No. 21) and will play the other Thursday night (the Browns, No. 20). The Panthers' lone win came against the 0-4 Giants, and the Browns were ranked No. 31 two weeks ago.

Are the Bills really worse than either Cleveland or Carolina? I don't think so.

And ESPN's Kevin Seifert doesn't, either. He gave the Bills their highest vote of the season, placing them No. 18 in his ranking.

A weekly examination of the Jets' ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 32 | Last Week: 18 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

The Jets dropped four spots. When you go on the road and get run out of the building by a team forced to play its backup quarterback for the last 26 minutes, what do you expect? The Jets' 38-13 loss to the Tennessee Titans was a back-to-reality check. Actually, the Jets are lucky they didn't fall into the mid-20s.

Not surprisingly, the Jets are second lowest among the 2-2 teams, ahead of only the Buffalo Bills (No. 23), whom they defeated in Week 3. Next up for the Jets are the Atlanta Falcons, still living off last season's success -- at least in the eyes of our distinguished panel of voters. The Falcons are 1-3, yet there they are at No. 16, the second-highest sub-.500 team in the rankings.

A weekly examination of the Dolphins' ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 20 | Last Week: 7 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

I must say, I’m shocked the Miami Dolphins didn’t move down in this week’s ESPN.com Power Rankings. Miami was lambasted on national television in a 38-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints on "Monday Night Football."

This was a measuring stick game for Miami, and we pretty much knew who was the better team after two quarters. Sloppy play and four turnovers were too much for the Dolphins to make it competitive.

Are the Dolphins still the seventh-best team in the NFL? I didn’t feel as though I saw a top-seven team last night. The gap between the Saints -- ESPN.com's No. 3 team -- and Miami was large.

Dolphins fans have been screaming about more respect this year. Fans in Miami certainly can’t complain this week as ESPN.com's panel showed the Dolphins plenty of respect by not dropping them at all after losing by three touchdowns.

Once a training camp, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick throws his team a bone, metaphorically speaking.

It usually takes place after a morning practice, often on a Saturday, and the circumstances are these: If a player of his choosing -- typically a lineman -- can catch a punt, the team will have the afternoon and evening off from meetings. Six to eight extra hours of freedom may not seem like much, but during training camp, every spare minute counts.

Forgive us for not recalling the year, but one fair-catch attempt will forever be remembered. Belichick tabbed nose tackle Vince Wilfork -- all 325-plus pounds of him -- to catch a punt (in the air, of course) with a night off on the line. But there was a catch to the catch: Wilfork had to do so with a ball in one hand, allowing him just one free hand to make the catch.

As the punt soared into the air, spiraling down the field, Wilfork gently glided laterally, lining his frame up under the punt. Just seconds later, the arcing football landed in his free arm, almost as if Velcro were affixed to both the ball and his forearm.

For a moment, Wilfork could have been mistaken for his pint-sized teammate and master ball handler Kevin Faulk, a regular punt returner.

The point of this vignette is that it illustrates Wilfork’s rare athleticism for a man of his stature, proof that men who stand 6-foot-2 and well over 300 pounds can be exceptional athletes, not merely human mountains.

But not all defensive tackles have Wilfork’s movement skills. In fact, maybe a handful of others around the league do.

And that is -- at least in part -- what makes Wilfork such an invaluable member of the Patriots' defense. It’s the ability to align in a variety of spots on the defensive line, the quickness and agility to disrupt as a pass-rusher and, yes, the hands to make a play on the ball as a pass defender, as we saw against the Chargers back in 2011, when he nearly returned an interception for a score.

Three-down defensive linemen are hard to find, especially among interior defensive tackles.

Vince Wilfork fits the bill.

When the Patriots opt to put Wilfork on the injured reserve list -- which looks like a certainty at this point, after he had surgery Tuesday to repair a torn Achilles tendon -- a key cog in their defensive wheel will be done for the season.

And we haven’t even talked about Wilfork’s contributions against the run. The Patriots don’t always play three-man fronts. In fact, they often align with four men at the line of scrimmage. But when Wilfork was selected by the Pats in the 2004 draft's first round, he provided the team a refined and ready-made nose tackle to anchor the defense.

In the Patriots' two-gap system, a defensive lineman is called upon to engage an opposing offensive lineman, lock his arms out to gain leverage, and be prepared to move laterally with the flow of a run. If a running back tries to squirt through one of the two gaps the defensive lineman is controlling, it’s up to him to shed the block and make a tackle.

That’s not easy. It’s an arduous task that requires unique skills. And yet, on virtually every play, the Patriots rely on Wilfork to man this task at a dominant level. A look at the numbers affirms his importance: According to ESPN Stats & Information, the Patriots in the past five seasons have allowed 4.1 yards per rush with Wilfork on the field, ninth-best in the NFL. When Wilfork was off the field, the Patriots ranked last in yards per rush allowed (5.0).

An examination of four hot issues from the Miami Dolphins' 38-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints:

Where the Dolphins stand: Last week, I mentioned several times that the “Monday Night Football” game against the Saints would provide a good measuring stick for the Dolphins. It turns out Miami isn’t close to being an elite team. At 3-1, the Dolphins are merely a second- or third-tier team finding its way. There’s nothing wrong with that for this young group. However, Miami was disappointed it didn’t at least have a better showing in front of a national audience. Losing by three touchdowns only furthers the national perception that the Dolphins aren’t a serious contender.

Ryan Tannehill lays an egg: We hadn’t seen it in a while, but the Dolphins second-year quarterback laid his first egg of the 2013 season against New Orleans. Tannehill threw for 249 yards, one touchdown and had four turnovers. Tannehill had a costly fumble and threw three interceptions. It’s extremely difficult to win on the road when the quarterback is turning over the football that much. Tannehill had been playing at an MVP level in the first three weeks. The Dolphins are only going to go as far as Tannehill takes them. So these kind of awful performances for the young quarterback need to be few and far between.

Protection issues: The Dolphins have struggled with pass protection in every game this season. Miami allowed another four sacks Monday against the Saints. Tannehill is the most-sacked quarterback in the NFL through four weeks with 18. The Dolphins must figure out a way to stop the leaks in pass protection soon before Tannehill gets injured. Once the Saints got the lead, they were able gear up against the pass and manhandle Miami's offensive line.

Champs up next: The Dolphins can’t sulk following their first loss of the season. Miami has another important game coming up against the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens at Sun Life Stadium. We are going to find out a lot about Miami and its ability to bounce back from losses. This is another golden opportunity for the Dolphins to make a statement in the AFC and improve to 4-1 before the bye week. The Dolphins have had a very tough schedule to start the season. If they can enter the bye with four victories, that will be a major accomplishment.

“The replay system is not working. The ruling on the field stands. New England will not be charged a timeout.”

That was the announcement made by referee Walt Coleman midway through the fourth quarter of the New England Patriots’ 30-23 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night, and represented an embarrassing moment of sorts for the NFL.

The Patriots (leading 30-13) had challenged a completion to receiver Julio Jones, directly in front of the New England sideline. Bill Belichick was decisive in throwing his red challenge flag after it was ruled Jones had made the catch.

Then, after what seemed like a lengthier-than-normal delay, Coleman informed the nation that the replay system was down.

We all saw Belichick’s reaction, his arms lifted into the air, his palms pointing up, his head shaking as if to say, “Are you serious?” (we're going with the PG, family-friendly version here.)

A day later, he was asked about the unusual occurrence during his weekly radio interview on sports radio WEEI.

“In that situation, you’re just playing without replay, which is the way we played for years and years. That’s what it is, but I mean, the fact we have however many zillions of dollars committed to this system and it doesn’t work, that’s a whole another discussion,” Belichick said on the “Salk and Holley” program.

Nice little zinger there from Belichick, who said he also would have challenged the second play after Jones’ upheld catch, when he felt an incomplete pass should have instead been a Chandler Jones sack.

The system was later fixed.

“That’s a question that really should be asked to the league office and the officials, because I don’t have a good answer for it,” Belichick said.

The New York Jets remain haunted by Aug. 24, the day Rex Ryan decided to insert Mark Sanchez into the fourth quarter of a preseason game. You know how it turned out.

They lost their only experienced quarterback that night, the presumptive starter, forcing them to put rookie Geno Smith on the accelerated program. Clearly, he wasn't ready -- and still isn't, evidenced by his meltdown in the Music City. It would've been better for him, and the team, to have him watch a few games from the sideline, but that idea got blown up the second Marvin Austin crashed into Sanchez's right shoulder.

Now the Jets are trapped on the rookie rollercoaster, with no viable alternatives. Oh, sure, Ryan might get sick of Smith's turnovers at some point and turn to Matt Simms or even Brady Quinn, but he'll go back to Smith because that's how GM John Idzik wants it. It'll always come back to Smith, just like it'll always come back to Aug. 24.

Which raises the question: Would the Jets be 2-2 with Sanchez at quarterback? Maybe 3-1? Or 1-3? I say 3-1, because I think they would've pulled out the New England game with a veteran presence behind center.

What say you?

ICYMI: Rex Ryan is getting fed up with the turnovers, but he's sticking with Smith "at this point right now." Why not throw in another disclaimer? ... Reciever Stephen Hill has a concussion and, from what I'm hearing, WR Santonio Holmes will miss time with a pulled hamstring. Next men, up. ... Mike Goodson -- remember him? -- said "words can't even express how excited I am" to get back to football. His four-game suspension is over. ... Tennessee Titans coach Mike Munchak called out Muhammad Wilkerson and Quinton Coples for their hits on QB Jake Locker.

NEW ORLEANS -- Some lessons can only be learned the hard way. For the Miami Dolphins, the harshest of NFL lessons came Monday against the undefeated New Orleans Saints.

The Saints and quarterback Drew Brees were the main performers and the Dolphins the obvious understudies. The stage was the rowdy Mercedes Benz Superdome, and the result was a 38-17 loss for the Dolphins that can only be classified as a disaster on ESPN's "Monday Night Football."

Miami entered the game with a perfect record, but the Dolphins learned they are far from perfect.

There was not much the Dolphins did right in this game. And with each passing quarter, the gap between Miami and an elite title contender like New Orleans got wider and wider.

This loss was not a fluke -- it was an old-fashion beatdown. Miami's coaches and players know where they stand after this game and realize there is still plenty of work to do.

"You watched the game like everybody did -- and we played it," Dolphins cornerback Brent Grimes said. "We saw that they were the better team. They were a better team today."

The Dolphins thought they were ready for prime time after their 3-0 start. Miami has not played on Monday night since its 38-24 loss to the New England Patriots more than two years ago. This loss to New Orleans was worse. It was, by far, Miami's sloppiest performance of the season. They played careless football for four quarters with little attention to detail. Miami turned the football over four times.

The Dolphins did not look like the same efficient and effective football team that we saw during the first three weeks. Neither did Ryan Tannehill. Miami's second-year quarterback threw for 249 yards and one touchdown but had the third three-interception game of his career. Tannehill also had a big fumble in the first half that started Miami's downhill slide.

Tannehill's protection also was not very good. Once the Saints got the lead, they unleashed the pass rush on Miami's one-dimensional offense and recorded four sacks. Tannehill has been sacked 18 times, which is tied for the most of any NFL quarterback after four games this season. About the only thing Miami did well offensively was run the football. But that was rendered obsolete after the Dolphins fell behind big in the second half.

The Dolphins will only go as far as Tannehill's arm takes them. This was a good lesson for Miami's starting quarterback, who fell to 10-10 in his young career as a starter.

"It doesn't matter if we lose by one or we lose by whatever we lost by, it's still counts as a loss and nothing more," Tannehill said. "We're not happy with it. We need to correct the mistakes."

Miami's ability was tested on Monday. But next week is when we truly learn about the Dolphins' character.

Coming off a short week of preparation, Miami will host the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens (2-2) at Sun Life Stadium. Not only are the Dolphins coming off their first loss, but they will be trying to recover from a three-touchdown pounding that could potentially shake their confidence. Miami has a much-needed bye the following week.

The Dolphins have a chance to go into the bye with a 4-1 record if they are able to quickly rebound from this embarrassing loss.

"I feel like we're going to learn and see about our character and what kind of guys we have in our locker room," Dolphins receiver Mike Wallace said. "I haven't been here long, but I feel like we have guys who are going to fight, we have guys who are going to compete and go back to work.

"I know tomorrow [Tuesday] when we get back to work, we're still going to compete like we're 4-0."

The Dolphins looked far from a 4-0 team Monday in New Orleans. But a 3-1 start in the first month of the season is pretty good for this young group, especially considering Miami's tough schedule.

Will the Dolphins bounce back?

"Honestly, I'm not [worried]," Grimes said. "It sucks. Nobody wants to lose like that. But I have full confidence in this locker room and this organization that can come back to the next game.

"We got a home [game], and just come back to playing Miami Dolphins-style football against the Ravens. That's what we're all thinking about right now."

Questions about the Dolphins might not linger if they had played a more competitive game. But being throttled by the Saints on national television shows there are a lot of flaws that need to be addressed.

"How you respond to the loss is more important than the loss," Dolphins right tackle Tyson Clabo said. "I think nobody is going to sit around feeling sorry for ourselves. We obviously have a lot of work to do."

NEW ORLEANS -- Observed in the locker room after the Miami Dolphins' 38-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints:

Somber room: It was the first loss for Miami (3-1), so this was as quiet as the locker room has been all season. This game wasn’t a fluke. The Dolphins knew afterward they were beaten by a better team. Miami players and coaches admitted they were outplayed for four quarters.

Protection issues: Miami’s pass protection -- or lack thereof -- was a major topic during the postgame news conference and locker room interviews. Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill was sacked four times. He continues to take a beating and is the most sacked quarterback in the NFL after four weeks with 18. Tannehill needs to stay upright and healthy if the Dolphins want to have a successful season. “We have to be better,” Dolphins right tackle Tyson Clabo said. “Obviously, [Tannehill’s] health is of the utmost importance to us.”

Looking ahead: Several players in the locker room said they’re already looking ahead to the next game. Coming off a short week, the Dolphins will host the Baltimore Ravens (2-2) at Sun Life Stadium. Miami’s character will be tested after suffering a blowout loss. Can the Dolphins bounce back from defeat? “We can’t dwell on what happened,” Miami cornerback Brent Grimes said. “Nobody is happy with it, from the players, down to the coaches. You just have to move on to the next game.”

Picked-up pieces from review of the New England Patriots’ 30-23 victory over the Atlanta Falcons:

1. It wasn’t necessarily one play, but in re-watching the way the game unfolded, the Patriots’ offensive approach seemed to reflect Bill Belichick’s belief that bigger is most often better. The Falcons’ biggest defensive tackle is Corey Peters (6-3, 305) and in terms of physical makeup, he’d compare closest to Patriots defensive tackle Joe Vellano. Think of it this way: When speaking of Vellano in the Patriots’ system, he is sometimes referred to as undersized. It’s not that a smaller defense can’t be successful, but for teams that trend in that direction, the risk is what happened Sunday night when the Patriots overpowered them at times (e.g. Brandon Bolden dragging defenders nearly into the end zone), and offensive linemen easily turned them to create running lanes at other times.

2. Unlike last week, when Aqib Talib followed Buccaneers receiver Vincent Jackson all over the field, Talib mixed and matched between Roddy White and Julio Jones. Seemed almost close to a 50-50 split.

3. Safety can be a difficult position to get a feel for during a game. It’s a spot where the player can really do everything right and not be a huge factor in the game because the ball might not come his way. Other times, safety play stands out as exemplary and Devin McCourty turned in one example of this on the Falcons’ opening drive. The Falcons had success on the drive, delivering a solid initial blow to the Patriots, and had first-and-goal from the 6. They set up a wide receiver screen to Julio Jones on the left side and McCourty’s combination of recognition, instincts and willingness to tackle led to a tackle of Jones for a 1-yard gain. NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth said he wasn’t sure how McCourty sliced through bigger-bodied offensive linemen to make the play, which was an astute observation.

4. Something a bit outside the box that showed up at times was defensive lineman Tommy Kelly lining up about 2 yards back from the line of scrimmage, but remaining in a three-point stance before he rushed. The first time it was seen was on a third-and-20 play with 4:04 remaining in the first quarter (incomplete pass). Bill Belichick explained Monday on sports radio WEEI that it’s similar to when a linebacker blitzes and one of the benefits of doing that is having a little more space/time can clear things up with how the offensive line slides and the protection will go.

5. With two illegal shift penalties, a delay-of-game penalty and a botched center/quarterback exchange on a fourth-and-inches play that would have essentially sealed the game, there’s still plenty of areas that the coaching staff can drill into the offense this week. It was sloppy at times on offense.

6. The Patriots’ play-action statistics were off the charts in this game, with the tone set on quarterback Tom Brady’s first attempt, a 15-yarder to fullback James Develin. Falcons linebackers seemed to bite hard against the run throughout and the Patriots capitalized.

7. The main job of a receiver is to get open and catch the ball, as Bill Belichick sometimes reminds. Blocking in the running game isn’t often discussed, but that’s an area where rookie receiver Aaron Dobson showed up multiple times. He’s not afraid to get physical.

8. Rookie defensive end Michael Buchanan (6-6, 255) runs well enough that coaches have him on the kickoff coverage unit. The unit hasn’t had many kickoffs to cover because Stephen Gostkowski has 19 touchbacks in 21 attempts this season, but on a second-quarter return, Buchanan made the tackle on a nice play. Buchanan (seventh round, Illinois) is mostly making his mark as a sub rusher (25 snaps Sunday) but his work on special teams adds to his value.

9. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady told NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth that rookie receiver Kenbrell Thompkins reminds him of Chad Johnson, Collinsworth said after the two combined for a 49-yard long bomb. Thompkins is wearing the same “ocho cinco” as Johnson, but his results in the team’s system have already been decisively better.

10. Rookie defensive tackle Joe Vellano’s third-quarter sack, which was one of the big defensive plays of the game for the Patriots, was a reminder that draft status means little. Vellano (undrafted) earned the decisive victory over second-year center Peter Konz (second round). Likewise on Kenbrell Thompkins (undrafted) with his diving 18-yard touchdown catch over cornerback Desmond Trufant (first round) in the fourth quarter.