Photo: Belichick gets a hold on things
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May 2007 ArchivesMay 31
We've just finished up a somber press conference with Kevin Faulk, Richard Seymour and Ty Warren, who each talked about teammate Marquise Hill. Faulk referred to Marquise as "family," saying that they became close once the defensive lineman was drafted by the Patriots, and they already shared the bond of being LSU Tigers. Though it has been tough being in the locker room and seeing his locker, Faulk said Marquise wouldn't have had it any other way than to have the team on the field as they were today: "You have a job to do, and to speak for him, he wouldn't want it no other way. Do your job. He was first in the weight room here every day." Seymour, who called Marquise one of "his guys," and spoke of him in the present tense, said the 24-year old was often in the building with the coaches, and done with his lifting and eating breakfast by the time most other players were coming into the building. Seymour revealed that there are flowers in front of Marquise's locker. All three spoke of Marquise's sense of humor, and Warren said his jokes weren't reserved for his fellow defensive linemen. "No matter what he had going on in his life, he had to be one of the funniest guys in the locker room, (and) not just defensive line; he'd go up and down locker room, from the offensive line to the punters. He always had smile on his face," he said. They also said it will be therapeutic to travel as an organization to Louisiana tomorrow for the visiting hours and funeral, which will be Saturday. From a personal standpoint, I didn't talk much with Marquise until the season was winding up last year. At Warren's charity event in Framingham, Mass., I chatted with Marquise and Santonio Thomas, and after that we'd talk in the locker room a bit about non-football stuff. We had a joke once and were singing Minnie Ripperton's "Lovin' You" as we were speculating on Thomas' musical tastes. shalise
Hey all -- The Patriots' passing camp session is wrapping up, and it has been an interesting morning here behind Gillette. Most everyone on the roster is here on the field; among the missing are Laurence Maroney, first-round draft pick Brandon Meriweather and Donte Stallworth. Jarvis Green and Randall Gay are absent, in Louisiana with the family of Marquise Hill. Not surprisingly, Asante Samuel is not here either. As for who is on the field, Randy Moss has had an uneven day, slipping on one route because of the wet grass in drills and dropping a couple of others. He had his hands on a ball in the back of the end zone in double-coverage but couldn't pull it in; to be fair, Reche Caldwell and Jabar Gaffney didn't make the catch on the same route. Moss did make the catch from Tom Brady on a deep route with Eugene Wilson defending. As he did last week, Moss is wearing number 6, though that is not his official number. Kyle Brady is a large man. Just an observation. Though he is not signed to a contract, Vinny Testaverde is here and was one of four quarterbacks out there with Brady, Matt Cassel and undrafted rookie Matt Gutierrez. We're headed to the media workroom now, where Ty Warren, Richard Seymour and Kevin Faulk will share memories of Marquise Hill. shalise
May 30
The Hill family has established two funds in Marquise Hill's memory. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Marquise's name to either the Ma'shy Hill Health Care and Education Fund or to the Greater St. Stephen's Full Gospel Baptist Church. Ma'shy Hill is Marquise's 20-month-old son. The address information for both funds are listed below.
Hey all -- We have a release from the Patriots, so now it's official: Randall Gay and Eric Alexander have been re-signed by the team. Gay was a restricted free agent and signed a one-year, $1.3 million contract. Alexander was an exclusive-rights free agent, meaning he basically had no leverage with New England. Alexander, one of several rookie free agents signed by the Pats who has gone on to contribute (like Gay and Mike Wright), is coming off the best season of his three-year career. He spent much of the 2004 and '05 seasons on the practice squad before spending all of last season on the 53-man roster. He played in 14 regular-season games and all three postseason games, getting the first start of his career in the AFC title game. Gay's signing was reported last week; he will be looking to get through the full season healthy after spending much of the 2005 and `06 seasons on injured reserve with leg injuries.
The Patriots announced today that training camp at Gillette Stadium will begin on Friday, July 27. All sessions are open to the public. The camp schedule for the first few days: Friday July 27 Saturday, July 28 Sunday, July 29 Monday, July 30 Rest of camp scheduled to be announced. All sessions subject to change without notice.
May 29
The family of Marquise Hill has announced the funeral arrangements for the New Orleans native, who died last weekend after a jetskiing accident on Lake Pontchartrain. Visitation will be held from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Friday, June 1 at Jacob Schoen and Son Funeral Home located at 3827 Canal Street at N. Scott in New Orleans, La. and from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at Greater St. Stephen's Full Gospel Baptist Church on Saturday, June 2.
Associated Press NEW ORLEANS — The death of New England Patriots defensive end Marquise Hill, who fell off a jet ski in Lake Pontchartrain, was ruled an accidental drowning on Tuesday. An autopsy found no signs of drug or alcohol in Hill's body, although more tests are planned and will take two weeks to complete, said Orleans Parish coroner Dr. Frank Minyard. Minyard said Hill might have suffered a mild concussion when he fell off the water craft. ''He might [have] hit the right side of his face above the eye when he fell off the craft,'' Minyard said. ''He had a pretty nasty bruise there.'' There was a slight amount of blood in the brain, which could indicate a concussion, Minyard said. ''That could have caused him some confusion,'' Minyard said. ''Although we were told he talked to the woman who was with him after the accident, he could have become disoriented.''
May 28
Albert Elias, the agent for Marquise Hill, has released this statement:
Patriots' defensive lineman Marquise Hill is missing after a jet-skiing accident on Lake Ponchtrain in his native Louisiana. The U.S. Coast Guard is actively searching for the 24-year old former second-round pick. "We are all shocked," Patriots owner and chairman Robert Kraft said in a statement. "We can only hope and pray that the search and rescue is successful. Our thoughts and prayers are with Marquise and his family. We know that Marquise is a strong young man and we will remain optimistic while continuing to pray for his rescue." The Coast Guard will provide updates on the search effort.
May 24
Hey all -- Restricted free agent cornerback Randall Gay today officially signed his one-year, $1.3 million contract, agent Albert Elias confirmed via e-mail. Gay was tendered at the second-round level by the Patriots, who spent most of last season on injured reserve. That meant that had another team made the undrafted corner an offer and New England had not matched within seven days, the Pats would have received a second-round draft pick from the team that signed Gay in last month's draft. The 25-year old Gay visited the Jets and his former defensive backs coach/defensive coordinator Eric Mangini, but left without an offer from New York.
May 21
Your Turn: What's your take on the return of Junior Seau to the Patriots? The New England Patriots re-signed veteran linebacker Junior Seau today. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The 12-time Pro Bowler will enter his 18th NFL season and his second season with the Patriots. Seau, 38, was signed by the Patriots as a free agent on Aug. 18, 2006 and played in the first 11 games of the 2006 season while making 10 starts. He recorded 70 tackles (37 solo) in 2006, a total that ranked fifth on the team. Seau led the team in tackles twice in 2006 and recorded a season-high 15 tackles in a game against the New York Jets on Nov. 12. He was placed on injured reserve with an arm injury on Nov. 27, 2006. The University of Southern California product has played in 241 career games with 237 starts for the San Diego Chargers (1990-2002), Miami Dolphins (2003-05) and New England Patriots (2006). The 6-foot-3-inch, 248-pound linebacker has recorded 1,794 career tackles (1,380 solo), including 53.0 sacks for 318.5 yards, 15 interceptions for 210 yards, 94 passes defensed, 12 forced fumbles and 17 fumble recoveries, including one returned for a touchdown. Seau earned 12 consecutive Pro Bowl selections from 1992-2003 and was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s All-Decade Team of the 1990s. He has been an Associated Press first team All-Pro selection six times (1992-94, 1996, 1998, 2000) and has been a second-team All-Pro on two occasions (1995, 1999). In recognition of his off-the-field achievements, he was named the NFL’s Man of the Year in 1994. Seau was originally drafted by the Chargers with the fifth overall selection in the 1990 NFL Draft. In his 13-year career with San Diego (1990-2002), Seau played in 200 games, tying him for first on the Chargers’ all-time list. He was selected as the Chargers’ Most Valuable Player a team-record six times and led the team in tackles in eight of his 13 seasons in San Diego. The University of Southern California product missed only seven games over a 14-year span from 1990-2003. He was traded by the Chargers to the Miami Dolphins on April 16, 2003 in exchange for a fifth-round draft choice. In his first year with Miami, he started all 15 games in which he played and finished second on the team with 133 tackles (81 solo), including three sacks. Over his last two seasons with Miami (2004-05), Seau started 13 of 15 games while recording a total of 101 tackles. -- OFFICIAL NEWS RELEASE
Read the rest, write another... May 16
Per team release: Patriots fans who wish to purchase tickets to individual games in 2007 will have the opportunity on Friday, May 25, 2007 at 10:00 a.m. The New England Patriots annually cap their season ticket sales, leaving a limited number in reserve for fans throughout New England who wish to attend just a couple of games each season. Those tickets will be released for sale through Ticketmaster. Visa, a proud sponsor of the National Football League and the New England Patriots, will be the only form of payment accepted. All ticket orders will be processed through Ticketmaster. Tickets will NOT be sold at the Gillette Stadium Ticket Office. Ticket orders can be completed online at www.ticketmaster.com If recent years are any indication, fans can expect all regular season games to sell out within minutes. If that occurs again this year, 2007 will be the 14th consecutive season that the Patriots have announced a complete sellout prior to the start of the regular season. The Patriots streak of consecutive sellouts is currently 137 games and began in 1994, the year that Robert Kraft purchased the franchise. The streak includes all preseason, regular season and postseason games since Sept. 4, 1994. If the Patriots sell out every game again this season, the streak will extend to 147 consecutive games by the end of the 2007 regular season. The Patriots season ticket waiting list remains in excess of 50,000 fans.
May 15
Hey all -- Apparently, Patriots' first-round pick Brandon Meriweather is getting introduced to the madness that is Red Sox Nation early -- the big board here at Fenway Park just flashed a sign welcoming the Florida native to the stadium. We're not sure where he's sitting, but we'll try to find out. shalise
Hey all -- Spending nearly all of his rookie mini-camp on the stairmaster caught up to undrafted rookie Justin Warren quickly -- he was cut by the Patriots today. Warren, a linebacker out of Texas A&M (and no relation to former Aggie Ty Warren), was signed a week ago, and did little, if any, on-field work during New England's two mini-camp sessions last weekend. The 6-foot-3, 237-pounder was a two-time first-team All-Big XII selection and led the Aggies in tackles in 2005 and '06. shalise
Patriots' practice squad punter Danny Baugher, who is with the Rhein Fire of NFL Europa, was named the league's special teams player of the week for the fifth week of the season (May 12-13). Baugher, one of three punters on the New England roster (with Josh Miller and fellow practice-squadder Tom Malone), averaged 45.2 yards on five punts and placed two punts inside the 20-yard line in Rhein’s 27-24 win over Frankfurt. A finalist for the Ray Guy Award as the top college punter during his senior season at Arizona, Baugher ranks second in NFL Europa this season, averaging 42.5 yards per punt, including nine punts inside the 20. Another player with Patriots' ties, receiver P.K. Sam, was named the offensive player of the week. New England's fifth-round draft pick in 2004, Sam is now with the Dolphins. Also with the Fire, he had six catches for 122 yards and a touchdown in Rhein's victory.
WASHINGTON (AP) — New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi and Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., offered their support Tuesday to a bill that would help make the public more aware of the warning signs of strokes. Bruschi had a minor stroke 10 days after the Patriots’ 2005 Super Bowl win. After having surgery to repair a hole in his heart, he returned as a key player for the team. “Tedy Bruschi is living proof that you can’t keep a good man down and that activism can come out of adversity,” Kerry said in a statement. “Since his stroke, he’s made it his mission to spread the word about stroke, to be an advocate and to inform and educate about stroke’s warning signs and risk factors.” Bruschi recalled his own stroke symptoms. “I could hear my son come in the room, but I couldn’t see him,” Bruschi said in a statement. “That’s when I went to the hospital.” The senator is co-sponsor of the STOP Stroke Act of 2007, a measure to raise public awareness of stroke warning signs. It also would set up a grant program so states can improve how they prevent, treat and diagnose strokes. Bruschi and other stroke survivors were in Washington to lobby lawmakers as part of Stroke Awareness Month.
Two players with Patriots ties -- punter Danny Baugher, who is their property, and wide receiver P.K. Sam, who used to be -- have earned weekly honors in NFL Europe. Baugher was named Special Teams Player of the Week for averaging 45.2 yards on five punts, and placing two punts inside the 20-yard line in the Rhein Fire's 27-24 win over the Frankfurt Galaxy. He ranks second in NFL Europe this season, averaging 42.5 yards per punt, including nine punts inside the 20 Sam, allocated to NFL Europe by the Dolphins, recorded six catches for 122 yards and one touchdown for Rhein. Sam has 15 receptions for 274 yards this season and his 18.3 yards-per-catch average is the highest among the league’s top 10 receivers. -- NFL PRESS RELEASE
May 14
Hey all -- ESPN's Michael Smith reported today that free agent receiver Keyshawn Johnson could be headed to New England, in part because of his relationship with Bill Belichick (from their days with the Jets). But we haven't heard anything like this, and to be honest, we're already wondering how everyone on the now-11-man wide receiver roster will be kept happy (not that all of them will be kept on the roster), so adding another player might be a bit much. In an interview with the Associated Press on Friday, Johnson said he feels "no sense of urgency" to sign with another team. The brash wideout will turn 35 in July.
Guess what? The Patriots signed another receiver! Chris Dunlap, a wideout, and safety Denny Poland, two of four players at rookie mini-camp last weekend on a tryout basis, were signed by the Patriots today. The addition of Dunlap to the roster means that there are now 11 receivers on the New England roster, with Troy Brown also expected to return and make it a dozen. Per New England's release: Dunlap, 21, attended Georgia Tech, where he caught 13 passes for 142 yards over four seasons from 2003-06. The 5-foot-11-inch, 200-pound wide receiver also returned 13 kickoffs for 265 yards in his college career and participated on several special teams units. Last season with the Yellow Jackets, Dunlap caught nine passes for 101 yards. Poland, 24, attended the Air Force Academy, where he started 31 of 34 games and recorded 180 career tackles (83 solo), including five career sacks. The 6-foot-1-inch, 225-pound defensive back also totaled three career receptions while playing for the varsity team for three seasons (2003-05). Poland served as a second lieutenant in the Air Force in 2006.
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) will meet with New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi tomorrow morning in Washington D.C. Bruschi, who suffered a stroke in Feb. 2005, and Kerry will meet to discuss the STOP Stroke Act. Kerry is co-sponsoring the STOP Stroke Act, which prevents strokes and improves the quality of stroke care. Bruschi will spend the day with other stroke survivors, lobbying members of Congress for support of the bill.
May 12
Hey all -- We're not going to profess ourselves to be great judges of character, but there is something to be said for women's intuition. That said, Brandon Meriweather is a good kid. He's done some foolish things over the past year or so, but standing in the locker room talking to him today -- both one-on-one and in a small group -- he seems like a genuine, engaging and funny young man. Please don't interpret this as drinking the Kool-Aid or whatever you want to term it as. He carried himself very well in light of all the questions he faced, answered questions thoughtfully and gave no hint of cockiness or even exasperation, even when he was hearing the same question for what must be the 30th time. He is still driving the same 1992 Toyota Camry with over 200,000 miles on it, and plans on keeping it just so he can remember where he came from. Elsewhere in the locker room, Meriweather's former and current teammate Kareem Brown got in on the act interviewing him, standing on a chair and taking a pen and notebook (from yours truly). Brown asked Meriweather how happy he was to have Brown as a roommate. Brown has also sought counsel of former Hurricane Vince Wilfork, and said he isn't down about being drafted by the defensive lineman-stocked Patriots: "It's an opportunity; the Patriots wouldn't have drafted me if they didn't see something in me," he said. Bill Belichick said that the weekend is more cram session than anything. It's a time to "get guys caught up on our terminology, how we do things, our offseason program, weights. There's a lot of orientation, a lot of teaching. It's not the time to evaluate what guys are doing." Belichick added that it's most difficult to judge the linemen given that there's so much strength, leverage and hand-to-hand contact involved in what they do. But with all of the players, he emphasized that they should "be prepared, work hard, and take advantage of their opportunities." shalise
Hey all -- We just came in from the Dana-Farber Fieldhouse, where the first of two rookie mini-camp sessions were held. The practice was held inside because of rain in the forecast, but it couldn't be more pleasant here right now -- sunny and about 75 degrees. There were 20 players on the field today: eight draftees, eight undrafted signees and four non-roster invitees. For those interested, first-round draft pick Brandon Meriweather was wearing number 38, though it is not known if that is the number he will wear this season. The last Pats player to wear 38 was Tyrone Poole. Fourth-round pick Kareem Brown was in #95, worn by recently departed Tully Banta-Cain. Scott Pioli was on hand for the session, as were all of the assistant coaches, including Don Davis. The recently retired Davis has been retained by New England as an assistant strength coach, but today he was lined up as a receiver with the defensive backs. For someone who had knee surgery, Davis was running in-cuts pretty well. Bill Belichick is due to begin a press conference any minute now, and then there will be an open locker room period. We'll post again after that. shalise
May 11
Describe how you feel? During the draft process, who came to visit you? Coach Belichick said he talked to you a couple of times. Did you feel like you had a rapport with him or a relationship that made you feel like you could be drafted by the Patriots? What are your impressions of the stadium and the facility? When did you get here? Have you tried to find a veteran to take you around and show you the ropes a little? Have you spoken with Tom Brady and Tedy Bruschi? What did you and Vince Wilfork talk about? What were your impressions about the Patriots before this whole process started? How do you see yourself fitting in? I know you have lined up as a slot corner. Have you worked at all as a boundary corner on the outside? Why do you believe the best safeties are corners? Do you see yourself as a defensive back rather than just limiting yourself to one position? You played quarterback in high school. Does that help you anyway to be better as a defensive back? When the team was asking questions about you as a person and getting to know you, what did that mean to you? Were they the only team that did that? How was the staff effective in getting to know you? Does it feel good that a lot of people in your life including coaches and acquaintances have stepped forward and defended your character? Was it frustrating to you the way you were portrayed during the draft process? Is this overwhelming to you being drafted first by the Patriots? How do you plan on handling that emotionally and physically? What did Vince Wilfork tell you? Was Vince one of the first people you thought of when you were drafted? Did he call you that night? Can you talk about the influence Ed Reed had on you? How did Sean Taylor help you? What did you get from him and how did it help your style of play? What do you expect to get out of mini camp? Are you nervous at all? How is your shoulder? When was the last time you had surgery? Is that something teams looked at?
May 8
Hey all -- Ellis Hobbs met with a small group of Boston media folks today, and though we were there, he covered most all of the topics we wrote about in this article last month. Hobbs is continuing his rehab from a second surgery on his left wrist, and said he continues to be cautious, working around the wrist in the weight room. He was wearing a black brace on the wrist, but said he can certainly still work on what's most important for him -- his wheels. One thing that was new from when we talked to him last month was the acquisition of receiver Randy Moss. Hobbs said when he was younger and Moss was tearing up the NFL, he and his friends would say a corner "got Mossed" if they were beaten deep and Moss out-leaped them for the ball. Hobbs reiterated that he likes the additions to the roster, but doesn't want New England to be just "paper champs."
With rookie mini-camp slated for this weekend, the Patriots announced today that they have signed seven undrafted players: Larry Anam, DB, Boston College, 5-foot-11, 197 pounds
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