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FOXBORO - One of the debates that has raged throughout New England since the trade that sent Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel to Kansas City is whether the Patriots gave up too much - particularly where Vrabel is concerned.

The veteran outside linebacker's departure has definitely left a gap at his position, and it remains to be seen if the Patriots will fill it from within the existing roster, or by seeking out newcomers off the waiver wire.

Already, the Patriots have skipped down the list to Plan B or C. Shawn Crable, the second-year veteran who missed all of last season on the injured reserve list, has started the new season on the active/physically-unable-to-perform list as he continues to recuperate, and fellow sophomore Vince Redd was released Sunday because it appears he just didn't fit coach Bill Belichick's plans for the position. Former Saints' defensive end Rob Ninkovich was signed to replace Redd and begin his conversion to a 3-4 outside linebacker.

All of that leaves Pierre Woods in the same position where he began this training camp - No. 1 on the depth chart on the other side of veteran Adalius Thomas.

"Coaches and the front office, had they not confidence in me and the other guys that are there, they would have brought some other people in," Woods said at the Patriots' training camp. "That speaks volumes there. So I'm going to go out there and work hard." Woods, in his fourth season out of Michigan, said his current spot on the depth chart does not afford him the luxury of slacking off.

"It's no different," he said. "You go out there and work hard. It's an opportunity. There's an opportunity for a lot of people out there, so that's all I'm taking it as."

It wasn't long after Woods claimed the starting job last year that he suffered a broken jaw against Pittsburgh, a colossal personal disappointment because it came just as he thought he was going to make a career breakthrough. He was placed on injured reserve on Dec. 13.

"I think I let my team down after that happened," he said. "I wanted to still play and they were just like, 'No. You can't play any more.' In that process, I had called and said, 'Don't put me on injured reserve right away,' and things like that. I'm thinking I can come back, and the doctor told me something different."

Woods, who finished the 2008 season with 27 tackles, healed and regained the weight he lost from the time when his jaw was immobilized. But life was never dull during his inactivity because of the addition of two new faces to the Woods household during the offseason, when wife Doris gave birth to twin girls.

"I think I was looking forward to training camp more than most of the guys to get out of the house and be here and be able to get some sleep," he said with a slight chuckle. "But I don't think I'm going to get that much sleep. I don't think we're going to get that much sleep."

And the reason for that?

"You get back to your room you try to get in your playbook, go over some things, then just try to go to sleep and get as much rest as you can," he said. "Then the next morning you get up, you do it all over again.

"You just go out there and have fun," he added. "I think that's what it's all about. Having that team camaraderie, everyone's out there, everyone's back in the groove of things, knocking some rust off and going out there and having fun until it's time to go get somebody else."

One of Woods' goals is to improve his pass rush. He has only one quarterback sack to his credit in three seasons, and knows he must improve that total if he is to be the starter. "Each year you come in you want to work harder," he said, "and that's something I'm definitely going to work on each and every day - go do some pass rush and things like that. Coming in this training camp, I'm definitely going to work harder in pass rushing."

While he's working to improve his skills, Woods said he would not be hindered by the ghost of the departed Vrabel lurking in the background.

"That's in the past, man," Woods said. "You'll have to ask Bill (Belichick) about that one. I mean, yeah, it's in the past right now. It's still the same here I mean, it's the Patriot way."

MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.