Wade details long journey to Foxboro
Rookie cornerback acquired in deal with Baltimore last month
FOXBORO — Patriots rookie cornerback Shaun Wade was a fountain of honesty in his first press conference Thursday.
Go ahead. Ask him anything.
What happened the day he got traded from Baltimore to New England three weeks ago?
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Ravens coach John Harbaugh just walked up to him in practice and broke the news.
“Coach Harbaugh was like, ‘We’re going to trade you.’ And my mind was just everywhere,” Wade remembered. “I didn’t know where to go with my mind. I had an apartment down there, I was settled down there, and it just happened.”
What about the next few days?
“That adjustment, I’m not going to lie, it’s very, very hard,” he said. “Just going to Baltimore, learning their defense, and how they play, how they practice and coming here is a totally different atmosphere.”
And what are those differences between the Patriots and Ravens? Wait, the Ravens practice harder?
“Practice-wise, it’s kind of the same because you’ve got a lot of guys that are vets, and they’re very intense. It’s probably harder in Baltimore, that’d be the little difference,” Wade admitted. “Meeting-wise, it’s probably the same. But lifting’s probably the most difficult thing, and the playbook because it’s a different language.”
Wade, whom Baltimore drafted in the fifth round last April out of Ohio State, also detailed how the Patriots’ weight-room philosophy diverges from the Ravens’.
“In Baltimore, they do single legs, single arms, and stuff like that. Here, you do a lot of legs, you bench and things like that. But every day is definitely a leg day here. I see they really want to work on your explosion here,” he said. “That’s the No. 1 thing.”
Wade was a healthy scratch for the Pats’ season opener last weekend against Miami. He said the front office showed mild interest in him during the pre-draft process, sending cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino to Ohio State for a sitdown. Wade admitted he knew little about New England back then, but he knew this much: “I just knew you win here. And I’m a winner.”
The Patriots acquired Wade on Aug. 26 to pad their secondary depth after a disappointing summer from their reserve corners. Two days after flying into Providence and participating in his first team practice, Wade played 39 defensive snaps in the Pats’ preseason finale at the Giants. According to Wade, the coaching staff taught him three coverages before kickoff.
Now settled in Foxboro, Wade shared he’s enjoyed re-connecting with fellow Jacksonville native Mac Jones. The two played on the same 7-on-7 team for high school recruits, once beating a team sponsored by Cam Newton. According to Wade, Jones is just like he remembered; the same smack-talking, touchdown-throwing sharp passer he won with eight years ago.
“Mac has always been the same person,” Wade said. “A lot of people doubted him when he was younger, saying don’t go to ‘Bama. But you see what he did.”
At Ohio State, Wade initially broke out as a hybrid safety/nickelback in 2019 before playing outside corner and struggling for most of last year. That season ultimately caused his draft stock to fall, another dip in his roller-coaster football journey that’s now stopped in Foxboro, where the Pats believe they can win with Wade like their quarterback once did.
Pats protecting rock
Opening practice with ball-security drills is commonplace in New England.
But those drills were never more predictable for the Patriots than this week, when both practices have featured ball carriers fighting off teammates trying to rip the pigskin free.
“We’ve always done it, even before last week. But obviously there’s even more of a sense of urgency now after the first game,” Pats running back James White said Thursday, referring to the team’s four fumbles against Miami. “I think everybody knows the importance of protecting the football so just got to improve on last week and be better. Those guys will learn from it and become better players.”
White said the Patriots are expecting opponents to make an extra effort to force turnovers in the coming weeks. The Pats fumbled three times alone in the first quarter against Miami, before Damien Harris let the game slip with less than five minutes remaining.
“Obviously that’s not what we wanted to do, but it’ll make guys better and it’s going to be on the forefront of everybody’s mind when we’re all running with the football — just protect it,” White said.
Those efforts should also help Patriots defenders.
Said defensive lineman Deatrich Wise: “If we can work on our takeaway skills, and at the same time help them with their ball-security skills, that helps each other out. So whether it’s a running back, tight end or receiver, they’re running with the ball, and we just take a punch at it or try to strip at the ball, and make sure it’s secure. But if it does come out, it’s a win for us at the same time.”
Brown, Van Noy sit out again
Patriots linebacker Kyle Van Noy and offensive tackle Trent Brown missed practice for a second straight day Thursday.
Brown continues to recover from the calf injury he suffered last weekend against the Dolphins. Van Noy is dealing with a new throat injury that only recently came to light. All other members of the Pats’ active roster and practice squad were present.
After Brown left last Sunday’s opener, backup offensive tackle Yasir Durant and second-year lineman Justin Herron took snaps at right tackle.
Durant repped with the starting offensive line during one period in the media-access portion of Thursday’s practice, a rare team drill made viewable to reporters. Despite Durant’s apparent edge, it’s unclear who would start at right tackle Sunday against the Jets if Brown can’t play.
Josh Uche or Chase Winovich would be first in line to replace Van Noy at outside linebacker, assuming Dont’a Hightower remains inside. Uche played 15 snaps in the season opener, while Winovich saw 12.