Up-and-Coming Linebacker Making Headway
MVN.com is reporting that a little-known Patriot 2006 acquisition has been making big waves at training camp. Linebacker Pierre Woods, and undrafted free agent signed by the Patriots before the last season for their practice squad, has won the Pats’ award for best offseason condition program, thus earning him a parking spot very close to the stadium. His hard work may have also earned him a new spot on the team, one working with special teams with some possible rotation time on defense as well.
Woods has been drawing praise both from teammates, who enjoy his presence and demeanor both on the field and in the locker room, and from coaches, who are calling him one of the hardest-working and most-improved players from last season to the present. Bill Bellichick is a big fan of players who will work hard and conform to his system, so don’t be surprised if you start seeing Pierre Woods out on the field more and more often as time goes by.
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Patriots Kicker Ready for Season to Start
The Sun Chronicle is running an article today on Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski. Gostkowski is following in the footsteps of perhaps the most famous kicker in football history, Adam Vinatieri, who has kicked more game-winning field goals than any other kicker before him. It’s not very often that there is talk of a kicker actually having big shoes to fill, or having to play in the shadow of the kicker who came before him, but that is exactly what Gostkowski heard going into last season. Those are some pretty big shoes to fill for any kicker, much less a rookie heading into his first year in the NFL.
Gostkowski had a very good year for the Patriots, stepping in and scoring 103 points (mark it, fantasy football freaks). He may not yet have fully taken the place of the beloved Adam Vinatieri, but Gostkowski has certainly formed his own path, and is a talented kicker in his own right. While Patriots fans may lament the kicker that got away, the fact of the matter is that their extra points and field goals are certainly in good hands - or, in this case, feet.
You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.
Pats Acquire Wesley
According to dailysouthtown.com, the New England Patriots have acquired Dante Wesley from the Chicago Bears for a conditional seventh round pick in the 2008 NFL draft.
The Patriots gain a special teams speed specialist they desperately needed in return for a late round draft pick. This deal seems to have worked out well for both sides. The Patriots will look to get Wesley into camp and integrate him into their special teams coverage before the beginning of the season. Look for him to make a solid impact early on kickoff and punt coverage.
The trade leaves the Bears searching for an extra “gunner” - a player expected to be the first downfield to cover punts and kick returns - before the start of the season. The Bears will look to their own roster to find a player to replace Wesley.
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Tedy Bruschi Writes a Book
ESPN.com is running a segment from Tedy Bruschi’s new book, “Never Give Up,” detailing the turn of events in which Bruschi learned he had suffered a stroke. Bruschi wrote the book with the aid of Michael Holley. For anyone who was unaware, Bruschi sate out most of the 2005 season after suffering a stroke, only to return to his linebacker duties far ahead of schedule last year. His story is truly inspiring to anyone who was ever suffered the effects of even a mild stroke.
The excerpt is a chilling account of what it’s like to experience the effects of a stroke over a sustained period of time. Since football players, especially linebackers, live their lives in a state of nearly constant paint, it should come as no surprise to anyone that Bruschi and his wife initially thought very little of the problems he was experiencing. However, the fact is, Bruschi could have easily died or at the very least experienced very real chronic brain damage, and is extremely lucky to still be playing football. Hopefully his story will serve to help others who feel the same set of symptoms better assess their issue, as early treatment of a stroke can be one of the surest ways to minimize its damage.
You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.
Brady Exceeded Expectations
ESPN.com takes an interesting look back at the notes that an NFL scout had written about several quarterbacks who went on the have NFL careers. Akili Smith, Cade McNown, Ryan Leaf, Marc Bulger and Tom Brady all had very different NFL experiences, and came out of college drafted in different spots, with very different expectations. As you might have guessed, some of the QBs with the biggest potential ended up having the most disappointing NFL careers.
For example, Len Pasquarelli noted that Akili Smith had some great physical skills that led him to believe that he could succeed in the NFL. By comparison, Tom Brady was one of the most un-athletic QBs in his notebook. Yet if you look at how each QB turned out as an NFL player, you would find that Brady has had, by far, the most successful career of any one in his draft year. With the possible exception of Brett Farve, he is the most decorated QB in the NFL currently, and will be leading a team this season, with another big chance at getting back to the Super Bowl.
If you would like to see Brady further distance himself from the pack, then you can get New England Patriots tickets at StubHub.com.
Is Moss Hurt?
Randy Moss, who was acquired from Oakland in one of those ever-present trades during the draft, is still injured after he pulled up halfway throughu practice on Wednesday, August 1, 2007. Yesterday, Thursday, August 2, 2007, Moss missed both practices, leading to speculation that the injury he had suffered to his left leg the day before had been more serious than first believed.
Granted, coach Bill Belichick insists that Moss is fine and doing well day-to-day but New England Patriots fans have to wonder whether or not this is truly the case. At any rate, fingers are crossed as fans wish for a speedy recovery for Moss. After all, everyone knows that there is nothing as fun as watching your favorite team play hard, and as rooting on your favorite players to carry their team to vicotry. If Randy Moss is injured seriously, then, his poor fans are going to be missing out on a lot of fun. For your chance to see the New England Patriots play live, make sure you get tickets at stubhub.com today!
Pats Make a Canton List
One of the big stories today at the ESPN.com website was (surprise, surprise) a list. This list was compiled to determine the active players who are most likely to one day be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. This weekend six players will be inducted into football immortality, those players include Gene Hickerson, Michael Irvin, Bruce Matthews, Charlie Sanders, Thurman Thomas and Roger Wehrli. Patriots fans will be happy to hear that many of the current Pats players are, according to ESPN, likely to make it to canton one day.
You will probably not be surprised to hear that three players from the New England Patriots made the top ten on that list. Tom Brady was the number two player on the list, right behind Brett Farve. Brady will be remembered as a player who could win when it counts- especially in big games. Richard Seymour, the Pat’s long-time defensive presence, is number 6 on the list and was also part of the Pats’ three Super Bowls. I’m also counting Adam Vinatieri as a Patriots player, though he currently is a Super Bowl champion on the Colts. Trader. He was the number 10 player. Check out the rest of the list by visiting ESPN.
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Thomas Will be New England’s True Impact Acquisition
According to Jeffri Chadiha, writing for ESPN.com, Adalius Thomas will have the most impact of all the Patriots’ offseason acquisitions in 2007. Though much hubbub has been made of the Patriots’ new wide receivers, especially Randy Moss, Chadiha maintains that it will be the presence Thomas brings to the Pats’ defense that will make the most difference in the new season. It’s an interesting perspective, and quite frankly, it holds up. Thomas will be joining an aging defense that fell apart late last season. His presence should definitely give everyone else on defense a break.
I learned something from this article. Junior Seau is still playing football. That’s not a misprint. Junior Seau is 38 years old. And it’s not like he’s spent most of his career as a backup QB or something. This man has been a starting linebacker in the league for his entire career. His joints are probably worse than most men twice his age. When you take into account that the average age of the Pats’ linebackers is around 32 years, then having a 29 year-old linebacker with an eclectic skill set becomes that much more important.
You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.
Patriots Defensive Back Season Over
ESPN.com is reporting that Patriots defensive back Chad Scott will miss the entire 2007 season with an injured knee. In true Bill Bellichick fashion, the Big Hoodie was telling the media only hours before the announcement that Scott’s season ending injury was “day to day.” It appears he’s getting a head start on screwing with the media, perhaps in an effort to shake off all the rust from the offseason.
This creates a new wrinkle in the Asante Samuel holdout. Samuel has yet to sign his one-year contract with the Patriots, threatening to hold out all the way until week 10. The Patriots have long held a stance of team over the individual, and their recent history would certainly suggest that they will not start allowing any one player to jerk them around now. However, if their defense begins to show signs of cracking, they may start getting a bit more creative with their dealmaking in an effort to get Samuel back on the field. Time will tell.
You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.
Brady Excited for Upcoming Season
According to the Boston Herald, Tom Brady is quite excited about his new receiving corps in New England this year. After starting last year with none of his favorite targets on the roster, Brady was forced to spread the ball to many receivers last year. This year, Brady has two new marquee wide receivers as legitimate deep threats in the open field, a luxury he has rarely enjoyed in his time with the Patriots.
Brady has voice his pleasure with his new set-up during training camp, talking about how excited he is to have so many new options and so much talent to work with for the first time ever in his career. These receivers are a big part of the reason everyone considers New England the unanimous front-runners on the road to the Super Bowl. The chemistry developed in camp will go a long way toward team success in their 2007 campaign. Brady is well aware of this, and is already doing everything in his power to form bonds with his new receivers, whether that includes hanging out with them outside of practice, or talking them up to the media. It certainly looks at though Tom Brady is ready to have fun with his new receivers this year on the field.
You can get all your New England Patriots tickets at www.stubhub.com.
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