When examining his stats, Kevin Faulk seemed like just your average NFL running back. However, he proved himself irreplaceable with the New England Patriots for several years.
In his 13 seasons with the Patriots, he totaled over 7,000 yards from scrimmage in the backfield as the team's primary third down back. Not to mention, Faulk's strong presence in the locker room as a leader and all of the other behind the scenes contributions he's made to this organization.
But with times comes age. At age 36 and recent injury plagued seasons, it's becoming tougher and tougher for him to prove his value with younger, more able bodies on the roster.
Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald sat down with the unrestricted free agent, to talk about his expectations and hopes for the 2012-2013 campaign. While all of the odds are currently against him returning to New England, Faulk is still holding out for some sort of miracle.
"I love the game of football," Faulk said. "I've been around these guys, the coaching staff, the organization for 13 years. It's one of those things. I really do miss just being around, just being around the guys, building the team, because this is when you build your team, during the offseason. When you come into workouts in the morning, running, lifting weights and just communicating with the guys, that's how you build your team."
BRADY IN NYC TO MARKET UGG FOR MEN
We all know what a great quarterback and team leader Tom Brady is to the New England Patriots, and because of it, he's also one of the most marketable professional athletes out there. His most recent marketing event wasn't for Nike, Reebok or any other athletic apparel, it was something more lighter, to put it in a nice way.
The New York Post reports that Brady was in midtown Manhattan yesterday to help open a new store selling UGG For Men, a company he has been supporting for two years now. Even though he is often made fun of by your average Jet fan for his support, he says he has never received any negative reaction from a teammate when offered a pair of the boots.
"I wear them all the time. I certainly have a lot of variety. I wear them to the Stadium, to work," Brady said. "Especially at the football stadium, a lot of my teammates, I've given away a lot of slippers to them over the years too. When you walk in the morning and half of the team is wearing the slippers you gave them, it's pretty cool."
"I've never been turned down by anyone where they say ‘Oh no, I'm cool,'" Brady said. "They're always like ‘Oh man that's cool but can you get me some for my wife?' They don't want to go home without a gift for their wife."
HOYER MOST 'MARKETABLE BACKUP QUARTERBACK'
Seems like every other day you here this analyst or that player or that coach or even that writer praising Tom Brady for his accomplishments, drive and talent as an NFL quarterback. How about a little bit of love for the backup?
ESPN's Chris Sprow (insider required) put together the list of the most marketable backup quarterbacks the league has to offer. His criterion for making this list was that one, the player most be available in free agency in the near future, or two, has trade value as a future starter. Sprow ranks Brady backup Brian Hoyer at the top of his list. He explains:
Last year, we said Matt Flynn would be the hottest name among NFL backups, this offseason's Kevin Kolb. He was. This year, it could be Hoyer. And while you could argue it behooves Belichick to highlight Hoyer's ability so a trade market emerges, it's just as likely the coach sees him as a sound security blanket behind Brady. After all, Belichick has needed a backup before, and the assurance that someone could run the New England scheme is worth more than, say, the third- to fifth-rounder the Patriots could get for Hoyer in a trade.