New England Patriots Links 8/25/09 - Coaches Need Preseason Work Too

Bill Belichick's Monday Press Conference.

Q:  At this point, what are you still working on?

BB:  As a coaching staff, those are the things we have to do: our communication, our decision-making, our adjustments during the course of the game in between plays and in between series. The clock is running; we don’t have all day. It’s not time to have a meeting about it. Just have a quick conversation, make your points, figure out what’s going on, fix the problems that your opponents are causing for you out there. So that’s our job and we need to do a better job of it. I need to do a better job of it. We’ve only had two games. There’re a lot of things I need to improve on just like everybody else out there.

Q: As the starters play more minutes, is it harder for the players on the bubble to change coaches’ opinions?

BB:  I think it’s important for every player to take advantage of whatever opportunities that they have. We’ve had two games. We’ve had a lot of snaps. We’ve played a lot of different people and some guys will play more this week than they did last week. Some guys played more last week than this week so it’s a composite of all the different playing game situations and also the practice situations. Sometimes you put a player in the game and even though he plays 10, 15, 20 plays, you’re still not going to get a real good evaluation of the player. Maybe the opportunities just don’t happen to come to him. Maybe he’s playing against a level of competition that’s tilted one way or the other and it’s not really equitable to what you’re seeing with another player. That’s where all the practice situations [come in]. I mean, we’ve had 30 practices so we have a lot of information from the practice field. We have some information from the games. It all comes together. There’s no set formula.

Ron Borges doesn't like the way business is being done in Foxboro.

So is the apparent existence of two ways of doing business in Foxboro at the moment. Bring up someone like Vince Wilfork’s contract and the future is simply too muddled to know what to do next.

Bring up Nick Kaczur and it’s the Monty Hall show: "Let’s Make A Deal!"

To be sure, this is an odd time in the NFL because of the possibility of some sort of job action, a capless 2010 season and a new CBA with new rules in place. But the reality is one thing hasn’t changed: If your team wants to make a deal with you, they will; and if they don’t want to, they’ll blame the salary cap, the CBA or a box only some people fit into.

TEAM TIDBITS

• Erik Scalavino says preseason is no-holds-barred for Welker and offers news and notes from the lockerroom and Monday's practice.
• New England Patriots at Washington Redskins.  Broadcast information, series history, team connections.
• Bill Belichick Press Conference - Transcript plus 15 min. video.
• Patriots Today: Monday news and notes, Brady's hit and more.  (10.52 min. video)
• Locker Room Uncut Watson, Wilfork and more.  (3.06 min.)

LOCAL LINKS

• Jim Donaldson looks at the personnel moves made by the Patriots over recent years and concludes they're usually right when they let a player go.
• Mike Reiss reports on Nick Kaczur's contract extension.
• Christopher Price attempts to figure out the final 53.
• Karen Guregian likes the pass-rushing bookends of Adalius Thomas and Derrick Burgess, and the possibilities they open up for big plays.
• Ian Rapoport notes how quickly Jerod Mayo has grown into a leadership role, but still deferring to the guy he wants to model his life and career after - Tedy Bruschi.
• Carolyn Thornton catches up with Nathan Hodel, competing for a job with rookie Jake Ingram.
• Chris Forsberg tells us Belichick's answer to what a rookie has to do to earn his trust at a position.
• Jeff Howe says Patriots TE Ben Watson is working his way back into form.
• Mike Reiss answers his reader mailbag.  Lots of good insight here as usual.
• Ian Rapoport Patriots Notebook: Ben Watson returns to practice; starters will play longer Friday night against the Redskins; Welker optimistic about his health and that of the offense; O-Line will work on their silent count; Paris Lenon behind the other LBs due to an injured leg.
• Dennis & Callahan Tom Brady makes his first appearance on WEEI for the season.  (21.58 min. audio)
• The Big Show Bill Belichick joins WEEI for his first Patriots Monday appearance.  (25.40 min. audio)
• Christopher Price offers some highlights from Tom Brady's interview with Dennis & Callahan.
• Globe 10.0 Most indispensible Patriot.  Bob Ryan and Dan Shaughnessy debate. (2 min. video)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Matt Sohn (Pro Football Weekly) Patriots adding 4-3 element to defense.
• Richard Deitsch (SI) Comparisons to Madden inevitible for incoming analyist Collinsworth.
• Ross Tucker (SI) NFL teams should take one-year runs at unemployed vets.  Like the Patriots did.