Giants' Andre Brown suffers 'tiny crack' in leg during loss to Patriots

After the New York Giants' meaningless 28-20 loss to the Patriots Thursday night at Gillette Stadium, one thing did mean something. Andre Brown, one half of Big Blue's 1-2 punch at running back, along with David Wilson, limped off the field just before halftime and was quickly diagnosed with a fractured left leg.

At the time, it seemed as if Tom Coughlin’s questionable decision to play Brown late into the first half had led to disastrous results — depleting an already skimpy Giants backfield.

But Brown said afterward that the fracture was "not that bad of a break, a tiny little crack in it." He added that he won’t need surgery, and he doesn’t even think he’ll need the team’s short-term injured reserve designation. His leg was in a walking boot after the game.

"We still got to do more tests on it. Last time when I broke it we knew immediately what the problem was,"said the essential third-down back. "Nothing wrong with me, nothing I couldn’t deal with before, been here before. They would let me know if it was serious, but it’s not. Definitely spirits are high and positive and I’m looking forward to coming back this season."

Brown knows from experience. He saw his breakout 2012 season come to an end when he fractured his left fibula in a Nov. 25 win over Green Bay. He remembers knowing instantly in that game that he’d suffered a serious injury.

"No, I would love to stay active," Brown said. "That’s how I feel. I feel I can come back from this ... in a couple weeks."

With Brown out, the Giants will look to Da'Rel Scott or Ryan Torain to serve as Wilson's backup. Scott, a seventh-round pick in 2011, spent most of last season on injured reserve with a knee injury. Torain played in two games for the Giants last year after spending three seasons with the Redskins and Broncos.

Coughlin admitted he didn’t have all the details, he did say that Brown would "take a while" to return.

That’s hardly good news for a team that hoped to rely on Brown after releasing workhorse Ahmad Bradshaw after last season.