Lineman Murray hoping role on new side of the ball won’t be lost in translation
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Bill Murray has heard them all.
The third-year Patriots lineman gets hit with a line made famous by the famous actor of the same name on a daily basis, and acknowledged Saturday that he doesn’t have a favorite or a least favorite.
“Sorry,’’ he said with slight grin and a shake of the head.
This training camp has been anything but a “Groundhog Day” experience for Murray. (Sorry.) Murray this past week has switched to offensive lineman after a decorated college career and two practice-squad seasons as a defensive lineman.
The 6-foot-4-inch, 265-pound Murray, who displayed excellent athleticism during his time at William & Mary — he once scored on 2-point conversion pass — was approached by Bill Belichick about the switch “a while back” and jumped at the chance.
“Oh, I was excited,’’ said Murray. “It’s an opportunity, and all I can be is just grateful at this opportunity and take it in stride and get better every day.’’
Murray said the coaches relayed the story of Stephen Neal to him and he’s drawing some inspiration and motivation from that.
“He’s the guy who was an All-American wrestler and then started out with a little D-lineman and switched off to guard,’’ said Murray. “It’s definitely a positive that people have done it, but once again, same thing, I’m just grateful for the opportunity, and [I’m going] with it.’’
Over the course of the last two seasons (both spent on the practice squad), Murray was often seen staying after practice and working on his technique with Deatrich Wise, is hoping some of that sweat translates to success in his new role.
“Definitely but right now I’m just focused on my fundamentals,’’ said Murray, whose mom, Alison, was at practice and beamed as she recorded his chat with reporters. “That’s the biggest thing for me. Focus on fundamentals, and then hopefully that will help out later on once I get a good base.’’
Step up for Zappe: Rookie Bailey Zappe has taken a good number of reps the last three days behind starting quarterback Mac Jones.
After going third in the rotation on Day 1 after Jones and Brian Hoyer, Zappe went second on Day 2 and his workload increased Friday and Saturday with Hoyer out for an undisclosed reason.
The fourth-rounder out of Western Kentucky has had his ups and downs, flashing a very strong arm in both individual and team drills, though he’s struggled some with his accuracy during 7-on-7s and full team periods.
“It’s all good. I’m really enjoying it,’’ said Zappe. “Just taking advantage of your reps when you get them. That’s what everybody’s doing here [and] continue to get ready for the season.’’
Zappe did pull off one of the better plays of Saturday’s session, hitting Kristian Wilkerson with a deep sideline ball that the receiver hauled in for a crowd-pleasing touchdown.
Asked about the play, Zappe didn’t want to go into much detail.
“He made a great catch. Really good play by him and we’re all just, like I said, trying to get better every day,’’ he said. “It was a good catch by him.’’
Zappe, 23, said he has a great relationship with Jones, who is just eight months older.
Rejoining the family:
Second-year safety Joshuah Bledsoe has been making plays this past week, getting under routes and getting his hands on passes. He missed last season with arm injuries but did practice some in December. “Just feels good to be out there on the field with my teammates,” he said. If you’re wondering about the unique spelling of his first name, here’s the back story: “So, when I was born, my mom, everyone in my family has seven letters in their first name,” he said. “So, she added the H at the end of my name so I could be a part of the family.”