Brady awe persists with ex-teammates
FOXBOROUGH — The number of Patriots who can call Tom Brady a former teammate is dwindling.
Brady left New England as a free agent after the 2019 season. Since then, things have turned over to a point where there are only eight players on the active roster who can still boast of being his former teammate: Matthew Slater, Joe Cardona, Trent Brown, David Andrews, Jonathan Jones, Lawrence Guy, Deatrich Wise, and Ja’Whaun Bentley.
They’re often asked about Brady by their younger teammates. What do they tell them?
“I tell them the truth,” Guy said Thursday. “The guy’s a great competitor. He competed on the field, at practice. He enjoyed games. He laughed. He made jokes. He did everything. He was very personable with every person in the locker room.
“That’s the biggest thing people are shocked about, how personable he is. He wanted to know your name, know your wife’s name. Interact with you. Break bread at a dinner table . . . That’s the best thing about him as a person, that he took his time out to get to know everyone in the building.”
“The kindness he showed me that he really didn’t have to has stuck with me ever since then,” Slater said. “I remember calling my parents and saying, ‘Hey, Tom Brady knows my name.’ ”
“When you try to put into words what he meant to this place, what he continues to mean to this place, it’s really hard,” Slater added. “I’m just thankful that we have an opportunity to celebrate him the right way.”
“To me, he’s always been a great player, a great friend, a great teammate. I guess his legend grows now that he owns a team; that’s pretty cool,” Wise said with a smile, referencing Brady’s stake in the Raiders. “Him as a person, he’s a great guy, when we meet, I’ll say hey to him.”
“Tom has always been the OG. Even when he’s been gone, we always talk about Tom and everything like that,” said Bentley, who recalled asking Brady for an Instagram follow his rookie year.
“He did,” Bentley added. “I was shocked.”
Despite the fact that he hasn’t put on a Patriots uniform since a playoff loss to the Titans on Jan. 4, 2020, Brady’s presence has loomed large at Gillette Stadium. Rhamondre Stevenson estimated Wednesday he walked past five pictures of Brady between the locker room and media workroom.
That presence will grow even larger when Brady is honored in a halftime ceremony during Sunday’s game against the Eagles.
“His ceremony or whatever they’re going to draw up for him, he deserves whatever he gets,” Andrews said. “You can’t say enough great things about the guy, right?
“I can’t even put into words what he’s meant for me and done for me and how much I’ve learned from him, how he treated me. You could go on and on. I could sit up here all day and talk about it.”
Ready to run
One new guy who’s ready to roll for the season opener is running back Ezekiel Elliott. Elliott, who was signed in August, is excited about the possibility of making his Patriots debut against the Eagles.
“I’m ready,” he said. “Ready to get back out there on the football field. Ready to compete. Definitely get the jitters. I feel like if you don’t get the jitters, you’re not really human. Just anxious and ready.”
The ex-Cowboy has traditionally run well against Philadelphia, a former NFC East rival. In 12 career games against the Eagles, Elliott has rushed for 1,107 yards, averaging 92.3 yards per contest. While he confessed to not knowing how much he’ll be utilized Sunday, he is confident he can produce if called upon.
“Camp was tough because you’re trying to put the whole playbook in,” said Elliott, who didn’t play in any preseason games. “But once you get to week-by-week, you get game plans, and a way smaller sample size. I feel like I’m in a good spot.”
Minus one
Cornerback Jack Jones, who is on the injury report with a hamstring issue, was the only Patriot who did not practice Thursday. Jones, who had gun charges against him dropped earlier in the week, is still facing the possibility of a penalty from the league office . . . The Patriots had three players limited Thursday: offensive lineman Mike Onwenu (ankle), wide receiver DeVante Parker (knee), and guard Cole Strange (knee). Left tackle Trent Brown (illness) was removed from the injury report.