CB Darius Butler, shown here at the 2009 Combine, flew in from Florida to participate in the Pats off-season workout program.

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Karen Guregian notes Rich Gannon discusses the importance of the QB being the CEO of the team.

Gannon believe Brady still has that cache with the Patriots [team stats] and that drive to succeed, even after a year away from the team rehabilitating his reconstructed knee, and with a lifestyle that now includes two children and marriage to a supermodel.

"There’s no question," Gannon said. "You talk about Brady, you talk about Manning, you talk about (Brett) Favre, and you could put Drew Brees in that category, these guys never miss practice, they don’t miss games, they don’t miss plays, they play at a high level, and there’s a reason for that. They’re masters of their domain."

Karen Guregian catches up with RB Sammy Morris at his appearance at Tufts University's annual "Read by the River" literacy fair.

Morris wouldn’t mind if the club finalized a deal with his former Buffalo Bills teammate Josh Reed, the wide receiver who was in for a free agent visit last week. "I know Josh well," Morris said. "I talked with him a couple of times. He’d be really big for our team. He’s a tough guy. He used to play running back. Just has a really tough guy mindset. I think he’ll bring a lot to the team."

"(Josh) has already visited," Morris said. "It’s not a matter of talking to him or trying to talk them into signing. It’s really just a matter of getting things worked out."

Steve Burton interviews Nick Caserio on Patriots All Access.

SB: Between the draft and fee agency, is this the busiest time for you? Is this a crazy time?

NC: Yeah, this morning I was actually scheduling some college trips, some workouts, so you have the college trips, you still have the free agent process. The owners' meetings are coming up where there will be some dialogues and some topics that are discussed, so there are a number of things that are into play from now until the draft and then even after the draft there will be some other things we need to look at as well.

TEAM TALK

• Andy Hart and Paul Perillo debate whether or not the tight end position has been de-emphasized in New England.
• Patriots Mock Draft Tracker: a wide-ranging sample of what the "experts" are predicting the Patriots will do in the first round come draft weekend.
• Patriots All Access - Dan Roche re-caps a wild first week of the NFL new year; Vince Wilfork sits down with Steve Burton for his first television interview since signing his new contract; Burton goes one-on-one with Player Personnel Director Nick Caserio; and much more. (20 min. video)
• Patriots Today - Olympians visit Patriot Place. (2.38 min. video)

LOCAL LINKS

• Mike Reiss sees the Jets have acquired some well-known talent, but he still has doubts if the totality of their moves has made them a better team.
• Chris Gasper says the more things don't change for the Patriots the more they remain the same in the AFC East, which isn't as bad as you might think. 
• Mike Reiss has an excellent piece on Ben Watson, who leaves New England after six years with mixed emotions.
• Christopher Price puts the spotlight on Benjamin Watson, saying his signing with the Browns brings down the curtain on an eventful career with the Patriots.
• Mike Reiss reports on the Patriots glaring vacancy at TE.
• Albert Breer wonders what's up with the tight end position.
• Mike Reiss offers his Quick-hit thoughts from around the NFL and the Patriots.
• Paul Perillo says Adalius Thomas wasn't the only "bad seed" in the 2009 Patriots locker room.
• Chris Collins notes Tully Banta-Cain thinks the team already has leaders in the ranks ready to step up.
• Tom E. Curran sees the Patriots leaning on their brooms during free agency while their divisional rivals were cleaning up. His proposed team motto for 2010: "Hey, we're still better than the Bills."
• Mike Reiss notes Scouts Inc's Steve Muench thinks TE Rob Gronkowski (Arizona) would be a good fit for the Patriots in the Draft.
• Jeff Howe lists some names to know who could be bargains in NFL Draft.
• Vince Wilfork announces his 7th Annual Draft Day Fundraiser at Pinz Bowl in Milford, MA Thursday April 22nd. Joslin Diabetes Center and The Diabetes Research Center will benefit.
• Christopher Price reports NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will address graduates at UMass Lowell's Commencement May 29th.
• Frank Sousa (Masslive.com) New England Patriots' big guy Ty Warren snares biggest saltwater fish of 2009 - a record-breaking mahi-mahi dolphin fish at 61lbs, 3 oz.

NATIONAL NEWS

• Brad Biggs (Nat'l Football Post) The NFL dispersed it's performance-based pay Friday. Gary Guyton almost doubled his salary with a $349,355 payout.
• Rick Hummel (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa spent some time with Bill Belichick recently and it showed.
• Tim Graham (ESPN) Patriots' TE depth chart plunges into abyss.
• Paul Kuharsky (ESPN) Interpreting player visits.
• Vic Carucci (NFL.com) Need for playmakers has wide receivers going fast this offseason.
• Scout.com (Fox Sports) Top remaining unrestricted free agents.
• Kerry J. Byrne (Cold Hard Football Facts) What are they thinking?! We examine free agency.
• Mary Kay Cabot (Cleveland Plain Dealer) Cleveland Browns sign TE Ben Watson, release Steve Heiden.
• Adam Schefter (ESPN) LaDainian Tomlinson signs 2-year deal with the Jets.
• Tim Graham (ESPN) Does LaDainian Tomlinson add something Thomas Jones couldn't?
• Doug Farrar (Yahoo! Sports) Did the Jets improve with LaDainian Tomlinson?
• Tim Graham (ESPN) Thomas Jones was almost twice the back LaDainian Tomlinson was last year statistically.
• Mark Cannizzaro (NY Post) Tomlinson agrees on two-year deal with Jets "believed to be front loaded and worth somewhere around $5 million."
• Rich Cimini (NY Daily News) NY Jets coach Rex Ryan loses stomach for obesity and undergoes lap-band procedure.
• Mary Cabot (Cleveland Plain Dealer) Cleveland Browns trade Brady Quinn to Denver for RB Hillis, two draft picks.
• Colin Dunlap (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) Probe continues into Roethlisberger assault accusation; Roethlisberger attorney hires private investigator.
• Lester Munson (ESPN) Factors affecting Roethlisberger inquiry.
• Michael Lombardi (Nat'l Football Post) Sunday at the Post: Things I hear, quotes and stories of the week.
• Andrew Brandt (Nat'l Football Post) The meaning behind the words: What they say and what they mean are two different things.