Lewis, White next in RB line
HOUSTON — Patriots running backs Dion Lewis and James White are cognizant of the past as it relates to the present. Kevin Faulk, Danny Woodhead and Shane Vereen have all had big-time Super Bowl performances, and the current tandem of passing-down backs could be next. There’s no denying they’d love to go off tonight during Super Bowl LI against the Falcons.
“I definitely saw what they’ve done,” White said. “I saw Shane do it my rookie year, had 11 catches. I just want to be a viable option, whether it’s run the ball, catching, blocking. I want to do whatever it takes to help this team win. It may not be catching 11 passes. It may be making a blitz pickup or making a check, making a big run or something. You envision all those things in your mind, so when that moment comes, you’re just ready to handle it the right way and make a smart play for the team.”
Faulk, a three-time Super Bowl champion, was at his best in Super Bowl XXXVIII against the Panthers when he had 61 yards from scrimmage and added a two-point conversion to give the Pats a 2922 lead with 2:51 remaining in the fourth quarter. It was the unofficial birth of “the Kevin Faulk play.”
Woodhead had 60 yards from scrimmage and scored a goahead touchdown in the second quarter of the Super Bowl XLVI loss to the Giants. And Vereen’s 11 catches against the Seahawks were a Super Bowl record for a running back.
Lewis and White want their turn.
“You always envision yourself having a great game to help your team win,” Lewis said. “I think as an athlete, that’s what you’re supposed to do. I’m just going to go out there and do whatever my coaches ask me to do to help put our team in the best position to win.”
Lewis and White are both making their Super Bowl debuts. Lewis joined the Patriots in 2015 after bouncing around the league, and he only played seven games this season after a pair of knee surgeries delayed his start. He still had a career-high 64 carries for 283 yards to go along with 17 catches for 94 yards, and he had an historic playoff debut with three touchdowns against the Texans.
“I warmed up to it quick,” Lewis said of the Super Bowl atmosphere. “It’s not a big shock. I take it all in day by day. I’m just enjoying my time here and getting ready for (tonight).”
White was a healthy scratch a team-high 16 times in 2014, including Super Bowl XLIX. His 60 catches this season were the most by a running back in the
Tom Brady era, so he has consistently been involved in his breakout season.
Based on the Patriots’ pattern of featuring those types of running backs on this stage, either Lewis or White could be on the verge of the greatest night of their football careers.
“It’s great to be contributing to this team,” White said. “We have a lot of guys who do a lot of different things, and I’m just happy to be part of it, to be part of something special. It’s very exciting. It’s the biggest game of the year, so I just want to give it my best shot to play my best game of the year.”
Super mindset
Defensive end Rob Ninkovich is gearing up for his third Super Bowl, and he made no allusions that he treats this like any other game. He gives this stage the respect it deserves, and it was a refreshing dose of honesty through a passionate explanation.
“I’m trying to focus on getting into the mindset that I was in before the Seahawks game (in Super Bowl XLIX), and that’s getting to the point where I’m playing as fast as possible, where I’m not thinking about anything but just reacting and I have no regrets,” Ninkovich said. “Before the Seattle game, I told myself after this game is over, I want to have no regrets. I looked myself in the mirror and said I played as hard as I possibly could. I made as many plays as I possibly could. And we won the game, so I have no regrets.
“You can remember this game for the rest of your life. You’re going to have that thought of, ‘I didn’t do this, or I did this or I messed up that,’ and it could have been the game. It could have been the outcome of the game. Everything is ramped up that much more. In the regular season, if you miss a tackle, if we win the game, next week we’ve got another game. Or if you lose a game, you’ve got another game to make it up.
“This game, it’s the last game. This is it. We’ve got no more games. So that tackle or that missed opportunity for an interception or a dropped pass could be the outcome of the game. You don’t know when it’s going to be. It could be in the first quarter, and it could affect the end of the game but you don’t know. That’s why you’ve got to capitalize on every opportunity that you have.”
Floyd wants to return
Wide receiver Michael Floyd is scheduled to be a free agent this offseason, but he wants to remain with the Patriots.
“I hope to be back in Foxboro,” Floyd said. “I love it here. I hope that I can make that happen, for sure.”