Full Squad Mini Camp June 6-8th

Mrs. B.'s Annual Training Camp Reports

2004 Archive

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7/29/04 Opening Day of Camp

    I'm starting off my reports with my "annual disclaimer" and an added one as well.  The traditional one is that any reference to "My Boy", "The Man" etc. refer to Tedy B. and that the posts will more than likely be heavily Bruschi biased... What can I say, I'm a Bruschi Backer!!  The second is that these reports originated years ago as posts to a list serve comprised of an intimate group of Pats fans that have become friends over the years.  It was at the request of folks on various message boards that I extend them to the general public.  I have since developed friendships in a variety of these places, so you may or may not recognize the names or get some of the "insides" but I plan on continuing to post in the manner that I always have. I have no problem clarifying anything for anyone so shoot me an email if you'd like.

    With that being said.... let Mrs. B's Training Camp Reports begin!  Big Al and I flew solo today (the little guy decided to bow out...) and got there early for the 3:00 practice.  We parked with the general public in the Mustang Lot although we all entered from P1 (the ProShop entrance.) It was HOT... perfect for the HHH loving Mrs. B. but not so for the guys on the field.  We grabbed a bite to eat then waiting in line for them to open the gates at 2:30.  It was mobbed and the bleachers and grassy knoll filled quickly. 

    The boys entered the field in shorts... many sans helmets even.  Tedy got a nice ovation when he arrived, as did Corey Dillon but the place erupted when Tom Brady entered the field... (not surprised at that!)  Every time Dillon touched the ball, the place went nuts. Word of the day... Rookie Showcase. The camp followed the typical schedule... positional walk throughs followed by the ever exciting stretching routine.  (This was the first year that Tedy didn't lead the charge in the run.... however most of camp was low key today anyway.)  Then they broke off for drills.  Most of the veterans stood out and the first and second year players took the reps.

There wasn't much going on so I'll just give the highlights and my impressions.

Big News:   Nobody on the Bike Brigade!! 

Dillon worked out with the rookies and took a lot of reps. The crowd went wild every time he touched the ball.

Bethel Johnson was on fire... fast, accurate, and even burning Ty Law.

PK Sam looked good... but Chas Gessner, although making catches, is significantly slower in his routes than others IMO.

Rodney Harrison, in tight coverage against Andy Mignery (who?),  gave the rook a nice shove after he made the catch.

Eugene Wilson was there... and PRACTICING!!

I never saw my buddy, Lonie  (P.U.P) out there at all...

Burris pulled the Stai/Tilsky veteran manuever....

    They ended practice 1/2 hour early and Linebackers signed along the ropes.  Of course, other guys (Brady, Brown, etc.) signed some.  Special thanks to Brian "I don't want an autograph, I just want to shake Tedy's hand",  who recognized me from my website, for his vocal talents in yelling, "Tedy, your girl is over here... Full Tilt Full Time!"  Tedy immediately turned and said "Hey Karen!" then came over and signed the 16x20 Snow Bowl picture that Al gave me for my birthday.  I also got to hook up with Waldo & Scott (from my site) , my Patriots Planet crew of Peg, JoePhoto, Bob & Cookie,  and Pires with his wife and baby girl.  Mike Schuster  was there in full regalia posing for pictures with his fans...

    All in all, it was great to be back but I'm looking forward to more action and actual scoops to report on tomorrow!

Mrs. B.... Posting the reports!

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 1)

    July 30, 2004 Morning Session

    Thanks to the double session day falling on my lifting day, I was up and out at the gym at 5:30AM in order to be able to get the report in after camp today... (we all have our priorities ya know!)  Anyway, got the boys up then headed out.  We arrived at around 8:30 and proceeded to the Season Ticket holder lot which cut down a bit on our walk.  As soon as I got out of the car, Dave from Patriots Planet recognized me and said hello.  We found some spots on the grass next to Scott and Kim (fellow webmasters) and although it was a weekday morning the place was PACKED!  (Mrs. B is pining for Bryant College.....) 

    As expected, the guys were in full pads and everyone participated, unlike yesterday's "gift day off" from BB for those who completed the offseason workout program.  As always, guys did positional stuff then the ever-exciting  stretching began... Sitting in the endzone is quite a sight with 100 posteriors looking your way in a pseudo Downward Facing Dog... lol!  When it was over, the practice started in earnest...Let the hitting Begin!

Here are my highlights and observations for the day:

During 7:7 Patrick Pass, Dillon and PK stood out..

Catch of the day:  Long bomb from Kingsbury to Patten getting a  huge rise out of the crowd.

From the  "What's Up With That?" file:    Davey wearing Hog Hannah's  retired #73?!

Tackle David Pruce had the "honor" of taking the first lap in the 2004 TC.

Big Willie didn't practice and was working with the walking wounded today.... ??

Kevin Faulk also wasn't dressed.

Ty Law still fancies those grey sweats and old practice jersey combo rather than the uniform pants.

Josh Miller BOOMS them...and the crowd rewards him with a huge ovation every time!

Troy, Bethel,  Deion, and  Givens  were making monster catches down the other end of the field today

Cherry made a great tip (don't remember who was the WR) but Harrison was laying on the praise Big Time.

Klecko laid the wood on Fred McCrary, and Tedy threw Cloud to the ground at one point..

Perhaps Lonie was there yesterday but I didn't recognize him without his bleach blond hairdo... he's back to brown (at least for today!)

        Practice ran the full 2 hours ....and unfortunately the crowd began to squish us when The Boys stopped for a water break.  The people apparently thought it was over, although they still had another 45 minutes to go so we watched the remainder of practice with people standing right over us with footballs and other things to be signed.  It was  the Running Backs' turn at the ropes today but Brady was the first one to sign a few.  He has perfected the "sign one in each section and move down the line" method in order to keep moving.  Little did I know, Jacob's football was the one that got signed in our section....and he's not even the pushing and shoving type!

    Fred McCrary spent a lot of time in our section and I spoke to him for a bit... He's very personable.  I asked him how it felt to be the hunted this year and he smiled and said that it was ok with him.  He assured me that they still have lots of work to do and would not be resting. They would be bringing it every single week and there would be no time off.  I wished him good health and good luck in the upcoming season. 

    Once the horn blew, the guys were free to go but Corey Dillon continued to sign for a bit in front of the bleachers.... That was until some kids decided to go on the other side of the ropes on to the field... Of course once one did, others followed and before long there was a swarm of people around him.  People started dashing across the field even!  Security broke it up and started walking him across the field.  He still continued to sign a few and people were trailing him.  He was EATING IT ALL UP! 

Welcome to New England!

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 1)

July 30, 2004 Evening Session

    I apologize for the late update but between the Frontpage software glitch and the fact that I got home from camp at 8:30, needed to shower, and get some dinner, then headed out and didn't get home until after midnight it's late in coming.   Here we go... Just when I thought that camp couldn't get any more crowded and crazy, then came this evening's session!  The crowds are huge... and if I hear things like "Who's number 54?" and "What number is Brady?" one more time I think I'll scream.... Can you say Bandwagon Jumpers here?

    Practice started off like usual, with walk throughs by unit.... Guys were dressed in shorts and shells.  Some trick plays were going on but... Mums the Word! Right away I noticed that Wilson and Samuel were both not dressed for tonight's practice  and quickly joined the other dozen (McGinest, Light, Chatham, Faulk, Fauria,etc .)  or so guys who headed with the trainers to the indoor practice facility.  Athough we were limited to view what was close to us on the grass, I could see Pepper working with his Defensive Line guys in the far field and running around like a nut!  DB's were practicing covering deep and going for INT's. QB's were tossing the medicine ball and dropping back... Receivers were hitting the dummies.  Charlie was busting Tom Brady's chops in response to the girls calling out to him every time he touched the ball. 

    After the stretch, they moved on to 1:1's. Ty broke up a nice pass to Givens and got a rise out of the crowd... but no fear, Givens made TONS of big catches this evening!! On the next play, Tedy swatted one and robbed Malaefou Mackenzie of a catch but he later made some during the rest of the  drill. Patrick Pass dropped one easy one but made quite a few impressive catches throughout the night.  Dillon, McCrary, Givens, Cloud and Patten and PK looked good.  On the far field Adam was working with the snappers/holders and showing the holders how he likes the ball placed.  Tedy took Grant Steen under his wing and was giving him some instruction on the sidelines.

    Later they set the clock to 30 seconds and Brady made a LONG bomb to Givens up the middle in tight coverage.  They practiced full squad for the whole period. Unfortunately, everything was near the other endzone so I didn't catch it all. The first unit at times consisted of Wilfork at nose, with Warren and Big-Sey on either side. 
 

Catch of the day:  Long bomb from Brady to Givens.

Laps for tonight:  Pepper was cracking the whip... Bailey, Marquise Hill and one other (but I can't find my notes!)

Pass of the night: Rohan to Givens.

What's Up with That:  Troy taking reps at corner!

Injury Update:  Bailey driven off the field in the golf cart.

My personal bias:  Lonie not practicing fully but taking some snaps.

       At the end of practice I moved back up the hill to allow the kids to get up front along the ropes but I must say... YUCK!  I hate even being near that mess!! It was Receivers turn to sign but of course Tom and Tedy signed some as well.  The crowd was going wild... especially when Big-Sey came by... He was playing with the crowd.. pretending to head in one direction then moving to another.  People were swarming everywhere and were going nuts!  Fauria was also a crowd favorite and everyone was screaming.

    Forgot to mention this morning spending time with my buds from Patriots Planet and tonight I was once again recognized by someone who has been to my site and congratulated me on being Fan of the Year!  I'm thankful that I had at least one Bruschi Encounter this TC as I don't think there will be any others judging by the size of the crowds.  Jacob and Big Al aren't enjoying it as much as in the past because it's just so packed... Heading out solo tomorrow as they are both busy...

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 1)

    July 31, Afternoon Session

     Headed out to camp with Jacob as Al had to work this afternoon.  They opened up the P5 Entrance (like last year) instead of directing everyone up and around the ProShop parking lot through P1.  Not sure if this was a permanent change or because they anticipated huge crowds on the weekend.  We got a nice spot on the the grassy knoll in the front row but next time I need to remember to bring a towel or something to sit on; dried grass plastered to the back of your legs isn't the most comfortable thing in the world!

    It was hot and muggy and the guys came out in full pads  which surprised me; I thought it would be shorts this afternoon and pads tomorrow morning...  Anyway, Mr. Kraft came out with Ty Law and he was on the field for most of the practice session.  He spent some time talking to Rodney Harrison as he stretched out on the sidelines. 

    During the initial drills, LBs worked on scooping up loose footballs, WRs hit the jugs in the field closest to me. Special Teams walked through KO returns. Everyone stretched out then they broke off into groups.  McGinest still wasn't dressed and Ted Johnson wasn't either this afternoon.  I counted 15 Walking Wounded heading out with the trainers.  Rohan was back in his Number 6 jersey. Kevin Faulk practiced today and looked no worse for the wear.  During positional drills everyone ran through obstacles then QBs tossed medicine balls, DBs worked on INTs, LBs hit the sleds, Special Teams worked with Seeley.  The best drill to watch though was the WRs who ran around four cones shaped like a square. They caught a ball on each side.

   Lots of blocking and tackling was going on when they worked on the running game.  Ball boys handed off to the running backs as they followed the blocks through the holes.  Three separate groups were going at it at once and it was  the most physical play I've seen yet at camp. TBC drilled Zeron Flemister and Tedy downed Hochstein like a feather at one point.

    Tidbits:
 WRs were running routes (with no coverage) Bethel made a nice catch close to the ground, Michael Jennings caught a long one over the shoulder near the sidelines.

Troy filled in again on defense.

Klecko in the middle with the second team and his buddy TBC at OLB with the first.  (Klecko and Tully hang together at camp like the Wilson/Samuel tandem from last year.)

Notables:

Catch of the Day:  Long bomb to Patten with Law in tight coverage.  Patten stayed down for a bit but got up to the congrats of Ty and the relief of the fans..

Silly Stuff of the Day:  Corey Dillon picking up Harrison and running with him in his arms after a play.. I  think could hear 37 laughing from where I was.

Welcome Back: Kevin Faulk... looked really strong today and certainly is a fan favorite.

    They ended practice with quite a few sprints then DB's came over to sign after everyone did their final positional group things.  LBs happened to be right in front of us, so Tedy came over to sign a few.  Jacob got his football signed,  I said hi and chatted for a minute then moved back away from the ropes to let the kids in.  Ran into Caty from my board and  a couple of girls who told me they came to the site and like it too.

    Heading out early tomorrow morning so it'll be pictures update later tonight then I REALLY need to get the Cinderella thing going and clean this pit!

See the rest of today's pictures here. (Gallery 1)

August 1,  Morning Session

    Headed out alone this morning as Al was still at work and the kids were snoring when I left.  My great intentions of hitting the gym at the crack of dawn went by the wayside in favor of scoring more than 4 hours of sleep for the first time in a week....  Decided to try the top of the hill rather than down the bottom near the ropes.  The sight lines were MUCH better although I'm not sure if I was close enough to get many good pictures.... (I'll know later when I upload them.)   And,  either the sound just traveled better or Seeley was being extra vocal this morning during initial ST work.  Also heard RAC's familiar beckoning call of "Hur-ry, Hur-ry, Hur-ry!" summoning his boys for the first time this year.

    Guys were in full pads again today and there was some good hitting going on..  The crowd's first big whoop of the day  came when Tedy and McCrary faced off and they both went barreling to the sideline after the hit.  He later threw Cloud to the ground like nothing ... Sorry to say but Klecko didn't look too hot,  getting burned more than not.  Izzo and Pass bounced off one another in contrast to the stand-off  between Dillon and Pfifer during the drill. 

    During the opening drive of the 7:7 drills Dillon found a hole and emerged  to the cheers of the crowd, but most of the time the defense won out. (Of course, it's hard to be happy about the outcomes either way when you're playing against your OWN team!)  Traylor looks good clogging up the middle and TBC is adjusting to his new role of OLB  on the first team.  Klecko's at mike on second team with Wilfork at nose. 

    It started raining about halfway through practice, just enough for the fair weather fans to leave and to insure that I wouldn't be taking any more pictures for fear of ruining my new camera.... Offense and Defense separated and worked in different fields.  Wideouts ran routes and Brown and Patten were catching like the veterans they are.  PK didn't seem as sure of himself as he looked first day... bobbling the ball a bit.  Big Cat came jogging by.... It must be like salt in the wounds as fans cheer for you as you're doing your punishment!

    The crowd loved the tackling drills and it was quite physical.  Tedy faced off against Graham, got him down, then momentum brought him down as well... Cries of "Bruuuuuuu" rang out. Troy got the ovation later when he faked him out big time... and Tedy gave him daps.   Bethel Johnson blew by Izzo completely untouched...

    During full squad work, PK was wide open and dropped one coming over the middle.... Bethel made a nice jumping grab but got sandwiched between Poole and Wilson on the way down..... OUCH!!  Rohan threw an INT which Izzo took to the house.  39 (Guss Scott?) broke up a pass.  Vrable made 2 TDs as our blue-shirted TE. 

    Then it was time for the most anticipated event of practice (with the exception of the coveted Tom Brady autograph... lol)  The field goal unit set up and the hillside crowd got into position as well.   Kids and "big kids" alike scramble to catch the balls and the crowds cheer wildly.  Even the players get a kick out of watching the people jumping for balls.  Women and seniors usually draw the biggest cheers...! 

    Wide Receivers signed today and spent most of their time along the bleacher ropes this time.  Tedy's two mini 54s ran around the field kicking the cones then later ran back and forth retrieving them putting them away.  I headed home in the rain thinking about the load of laundry on the line and all I still have to do today...

Mrs. B. (who is watching 2001 Pats/SD overtime win while posting today's report!)

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 2)

August 1, Evening Session

    Headed out with the boys expecting to watch the practice in the stadium on the Jumbotron but the rain subsided and they changed practice back to the outside field at the last minute.  Grabbed a spot on the top of the hill while Al stood down at the ropes with camera in hand. This was the least crowded session yet  but I'm sure that it was because of the initial announcement that practice would be indoors.

    Giving you the Cliff Notes Version tonight as I have three sessions worth of photos to edit and post on the site which will take quite a few hours...

*Veterans and first team guys wore shorts, jerseys and ball caps and did walk through stuff in the left field while the newer players and rookies practiced in the right.

*Michael Jennings and Ricky Bryant (19) returned punts. Jennings made an awesome cut, creating a cloud of turf, and getting by everyone. 

*Randall Gay is making his presence known... jumping up to break up a pass from Rohan to Gessner.

*Stokes was on fire tonight, making diving one handed grab... the crowd went wild.  (He looked great all night, showing speed and good hands.)

*Klecko intercepted Kingsbury during full squad work.

*Cloud looked strong finding all the holes tonight.

Highlights caught on Film... (ok, actually digital..lol!)

*Catch of the Day:  Stokes one hander on the sideline. 

* Honorable Mention... PK Sam jumping grab.

"Look at Me.. I Want to Make the Team" Player of the Day:  Michael Jennings... fast, elusive, solid effort on every play and couldn't miss tonight.

    When practice ended everyone ran a couple of lengths of the field then Defensive Linemen signed.  Of course, Brady signed some as always and even Belichick and Pepper got in on the act.  Most of the other guys headed straight out...  The Brothers Bruschi once again cleared the field of cones while I chatted with Tom Curran for a bit. 

    Most disturbing events of the night are the tie between the obnoxious man at the ropes pushing and shoving everyone in sight (women and children included) to try to get Seymour's autograph... and the father who was "coaching" his young daughter on the way out "Next time stick the ball out and just push everyone out of the way..."

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 2)

August 2nd Afternoon Session

   Camp was hot and mobbed as ever this afternoon.  Guys were in full pads under the blaring sun.  Jarvis was back  practicing and Willie was wearing uniform pants so I thought he was taking part but he ended up going with the rehab crew to indoor field.  Ty Law didn't practice today either along with the usual PUPs and Givens, Asante, TJ etc.

   Guys did the usual postional drills with nothing of note.  There were lots of team segments this afternoon and although they didn't tackle full out, there were some good pops. The Harrison/Dillon saga continues.... Rodney laid him out and I'm sure this isn't the end of it.... Seems every year there's a good brawl and I sense one brewing. (I can still see Tedy B diving over the top of the pile last summer!!)  

    While the first team was on the field, Brady connected with Branch for a nice completion right in front of us... Harrison was pissed!   Cloud made some good runs with the second team.. Rohan would have gotten sacked more than once and did a lot of scrambling, eventually throwing balls away. At one point Jarvis was on him in seconds....He also overthrew Bethel in the endzone...   Seems that the "strong but erratic" label that I gave him last camp hasn't changed much....

    Graham looked better today, catching most of what came his way.  PK was wide open and missed a pass...Tedy deflected a Brady pass, and Izzo deflected one from Rohan..  Rodney broke up an endzone pass to PK sending him crashing to the ground. Kevin Faulk looked strong once again...  David "You Know" Patten made a spectacular leaping one handed grab at the back of the Endzone but was out of bounds...

    The best part of practice  were the 2 Minute No Huddle segments.  The first team put together an exiting drive resulting in a Branch TD... During that drive, Mayer nearly intercepted but dropped the ball, Faulk ran, Brown caught a long bomb, complete to Deion, then  (insert trick play here....), culminating in the Branch TD.. Tedy was ripping as he left the field.....

    The second team's drive consisted of a Rohan completion to Stokes then an INT by Rodney.  They continued to run out the clock although the drive would have been dead.  Rohan hit Jennings twice... pretty nice jumping and diving grabs... leading to a throw away  and incomplete pass to PK ending the segment.  They then did some field goal work with moving back with each attempt.  Adam made 3 out of 4.

    Practice ran a little late, the O-Line signed only along the bleachers and the only other player to sign today was Brady causing the usual screams and swarms of people...  I honestly must say that I was quite annoyed today...not with the caliber of the practice, rather with the heckling and constant yelling to the players coming  from my section.  It also seemed that the sole reason for some to show up was to get an autograph and when nobody came by the grassy area they were obnoxious.   Met Karen from my board on the way out... and beat the rain on RT. 1 to get the clothes off the line before they got wet for the second time in two days!

Mrs. B... (who's watching her boy on Patriots Cam on NFL Total Access... NOW!)

See the rest of today's pictures here.  (TC Gallery 2)

August 3rd, Morning Session

    Got in an early morning run before meeting Vincent and Julie from Montreal at camp at 8:30.  We parked ourselves at the top of the hill and waited for their first training camp session to start.  I said hello to Bryan Morry (PFW) and got a kick out of his comment about reading my report last night...LOL!  Back-ups and Rookies arrived on the field in shorts, shoulder pads and helmets but the Starters didn't show up until 9:30.  They wore shorts and jerseys only so I knew that it would be an extremely light session.  The team huddled up and sang Happy Birthday to Tom then broke off.  Special Teams worked on punt returns and squib kicks and others did some light drills.  Prior to the infamous stretch when the whole team usually runs two lengths of the field, only certain guys did several today.  I was clueless as to why but I'm sure there was a reason.

    When the stretching ended, all of the starters went to the left field and Defense met with RAC and offense with Weis for the entire session.  On the right field, the rest of the guys did some full squad work with the NFL officials on the field.  Not much to report here either... Stokes made a couple of good grabs, Cloud had quite a few carries and Rohan hit PK for a long bomb up the middle for the COD...  Klecko either deflected a pass or got an INT (I couldn't see it all.)  Ricky Bryant was returned and made some but had a big miss...  And that, my friends, is about the extent of it!

    Quarterbacks signed today, but Tedy and Vrabel made the rounds too, as did Brown and Branch....  Lots of Happy Birthday signs were visible and the crowd was just as wild as always... The craziest site I saw today was a lady literally climbing on the fence near the VIP section when Brady was there.... The Brew Crew lounged on the grass (after the boys cleaned up the cones, of course!) I soon headed out and ran into  Jessica  who was thrilled because she talked to Tom and gave him a card, and Cookie who I'll be seeing again tonight along with the rest of the Patriots Planet crew.

Mrs. B (who may even get to take a dip in the pool IF I  can get caught up on my picture updates!)

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 2)

August 3rd, Season Ticket Holder Session

    Met the Zipster, Vincent from Montreal, and the Planet crew at the Outlaw BBQ prior to the practice then headed in early to scope out our new tailgate lot and map the route for Zip to make it in to the stadium.. Everything went well and we sat in the front row of the Bruschi Backer Section while he got situated in the handicapped seating along with Wolfie and Darren and Madelyn.   They had the Superbowl DVD playing on the Jumbotrons until practice started.  Westy spotted me and said hello then we later hooked up in the concourse, took a photo and chatted a bit.

    John Rook was the MC and as a nice touch for people who are not accustomed to attending training camp, he explained what the team would be working on for each period.  The session followed the same routine as the rest of them done on the practice fields.... ( Walk through, drills, stretching, drills, full team work... etc.)

    It's late and I'm still WAY behind with my pictures and website  so I'm going to give the list of tidbits.  (Also, there were lots of eyes there tonight so I'm sure there will be mucho reports posted...)

• Big Cat switched number to 74.

• Officials were on the field and flew some flags tonight.

• Ty Law didn't practice for the second day and Traylor joined the Rehab Crew of about 20 tonight.

• Light is REALLY thin.

• Harrison and Dillon were horsing around a bit before the practice.

• Both punters (Miller and Scates) can Boom them!  Josh made such an awesome punt, the crowd went wild and even some of the players applauded!

• I loved the 1:1 tackling drills.. The LBs and RBs started laying down on their backs, had to get up quickly and tackle from that position....

• During the scripted plays, PK had a drop but looked solid most of the night. Brady overthrew  a wide open Bethel Johnson along the sidelines.. followed by an awesome grab by a  backpedaling PK in double coverage.

• Troy was consistent as always... and did a nice job filling in at CB again tonight.

• Brady connected with Graham for a  TD right in front of us.... and later with Bethel who skirted around the cone to stay in bounds.  Brady was pumped and whooped it up and High-Fived him big time.  He gave Dillon the same treatment when he punched it in as well.

• Branch was solid and faked out Wilson catching a bomb on a blitz.

• Troy Brown made a sweet over the shoulder catch.

• Harrison totally DRILLED Kevin Faulk right in front of us then immediately put his hands up to say sorry and hit him on the helmet.

• Adam hit 4/5 FG's with each getting progressively further back.

• Patrick Pass was solid and although on the bubble every  year due to numbers, performs consistently, IMO.

• It totally appeared to be an Offensive Victory tonight,  however many of the plays never would have happened in a real situation because of the pass rush...

• Ethan Kelly had a nice stop in the Red Zone and Klecko played solidly as well.

• For the second practice in row, Bethel has needed the assistance of a trainer to massage out his leg towards the end of practice... Hopefully  it's not the infamous "tightening up" or equally famous "sore leg"!

    When practice was over most of the guys headed to the locker rooms but Tedy did a half circle of the stadium giving hand slaps and waving to the crowd.  When he got to us, we pointed Zip out to him and when he noticed him, his face lit up and gave him a thumbs up.  He then went to do an interview and we headed up to meet Zip. I saw Givens and Koppen signing then Deion  and Troy got the crowed going... Branch took off his gloves, signed one then threw it to the crowd, signed the other and threw it out as well. Then in a dramatic fashion took off his helmet, pretended to sign it and faked throwing it... He was laughing and joking and Troy was getting the crowd riled up!

 Mrs. B (Can't think of much else, but I'm sure I missed some action down the other end!)

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 2)

August 4th, Afternoon Session

This one's got to be the super short version as I headed straight to Jacob's football practice from TC then did the Taxi-Mom Mall Run, It's after 9:30, I just got home, have things to do around here and I'm beat....

• Dog days of summer turned into the Dog House today for the boys... practice ran over by a half hour, both the defensive unit and offensive units ran  laps earlier during team segments, Warren, Soriano, Vrabel, Kurpeikis all took individual laps but the Mega-lap for the day was a double field trot by Poole, twice around for a HUGE blown coverage resulting in a wide open TD  by... Gosh I forgot; must be the sun and long hours!

• Terry Bradshaw spent some time on the field talking to Kraft and Fred Smerlas was in the media tent right behind me.  The VIP area was chock full of "suits" and "business casuals"...

• Randall Gay wasn't dressed, I didn't see Willie even with the injured crew, Traylor didn't practice nor did Seymour.

• Asante was back in uniform and participated fully; Lonie was doing some snapping during a punt block drill although he wasn't in uniform.

• The first big cheer from the crowd came from a long bomb from Brady to Bethel during route drills then later beat Mayer for a long TD during team segments.

• Cloud was finding all the holes today and looked impressive.

• Troy blew by Buckley for a TD pass from Brady and the pair connected all afternoon.

• Dillon beautifully picked up a Bruschi blitz...

• Graham was today's recipient of the Harrison Hit!

• Malaefou Mackenzie had a rough day, dropping multiple passes  and tipping one into the hands of Assante Samuel for an INT.

• Kelley played Nose with the first team and Green and Warren saw a lot of action as well.

    Practice ended at 5:00 then Special Teams signed. Klecko signed quite a few  and Tedy made his way around the entire length of the bleachers and grassy area.  Of course Brady did his usual routine, much to the delight of screaming fans.

Mrs B. (wondering when BB will give us all the surprise day off....)

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 2)

August 5th Morning Session

    Headed out to Gillette in the rain to watch the practice on the Jumbotrons  It was damp, windy and cold but my trusty Bruschi Backer Hoodie kept me cozy... Fred Kirsch (PFW) gave commentary over the PA which is  a nice touch for folks who don't happen to live there like me and already know the routine and players by heart...

    Didn't catch all that much as I was the mercy of the camera man and quite frankly, by the 11th practice there's not much breaking news to report.  Of course  there were the requisite walk throughs,  individual drills, stretching,  and then the offense vs. defense  ran plays.  Guys were in full pads, Ty Law and Traylor were back to practicing, and the rest of the walking wounded remained the same as far as I could tell. 

Here are the tidbits from this morning:

• Zebras were still in the house....

• Dillon got most of the carries with the first team (of course) and man... he can find the holes big time!  Cloud saw most of the action with the second unit.

• Rohan threw his daily INT (Harrison)  but also made some nice long completions to PK and Jennings among others.  Reid also picked him`off but it was a tip by the WR and not his fault.

• Nice coverage by Poole in breaking up a bomb to Branch.

• Troy filled in at CB again today.

• TBC was quick to get to the QB on more than one play.

• Brady hit Branch for a long TD pass with Assante on the coverage.

• Brady's perfected play action to an artistic level! 

• BONUS Brady Fact... (but I don't want to be the jinx here...) He's yet to throw an INT in this year's camp..

    With about a half hour remaining, they announced that Law, Poole, Miller, Cloud and ? would be signing near the ProShop and the stadium emptied, leaving about a dozen die-hards to finish watching the practice.  I spent some time talking football with a father and son, Al and Gary, who happened to be NCAA certified referees.  It was interesting to listen to them calling the penalties as they happened while watching practice because, admittedly, that is the aspect of the game that I know the least about!  

Mrs. B. (who has until tomorrow at 2:30 to actually get some things done around here... like go to the market even!)

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 2)

August 8, Morning Session

    Arrived at camp after my usual 30 minute drive but didn't actually get to the fields until 15 minutes later due to the traffic to get in and the walk.  Ironically, I pulled in right behind Kate and Rehannen, people that I know... what are the chances of that?! The entire lot was jammed and the area around the practice fields was as well.   Lucky for me, a couple left the grass right in front of where I was standing (behind about 10 people whose heads I couldn't see over...) so I grabbed the spot. 

    Practice was a walk through this morning with the guys wearing shorts and helmets and no pads at all.  They ran through plays, hail marys, loose footballs, line shifts, some two minute stuff, etc... but they literally walked  so there's not much to report... EXCEPT.... this little TidBit... Colvin, McGinest, and Fauria were dressed and practiced!  The session lasted an hour and 15 minutes and DBs signed at the end.

Since there's no football news per se... here are some sights and sounds from today....

• Kids ducked under the ropes and swarmed Ty and Tedy when they came by to sign....

• A middle school aged boy was playing the sax after practice while people were getting autographs...

• A guy dressed  in a SuperFan outfit... complete with cape, sat in front of me...

• I almost got trampled standing on the hill  when Brady came by...

• Steve Burton can give Denzel Washington a run for his money...

• The Bruschi Brothers had lots of help with  "Cone Duty" from the contingent of little female 54s on the field...

• It took me a good 20 minutes to find my car... DUH... (Note to self:  They put numbers on the poles for a reason!)

    Tonight's practice is at 7:00 in the stadium so there should be more to report then.

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 8, Evening Session

    Headed out early with Big Al and Jacob in anticipation of a packed house and it certainly was!  The North EZ and Northwest corner up to 134 were pretty jammed.   Hooked up with Joephoto and Mary from Pats Planet which was nice.  Guys were in full uniform but it was a no contact practice.  After the obligatory  walk throughs and light drills the guys headed over to the tunnel to line up for their entrance as if it was game day.  They headed to their positions to stretch out with the Captains at the helm.  The crowd gave a nice cheer as they took the field. Coordinators had their game day headsets on tonight too.

    Units broke off for various  positional drills and defense worked in front of me (finally!)  DBs and LBs worked on INTs, first with 2 hands then one.  The OL guys did the "happy feet" thing... (I always think of Fred Flintstone bowling...lol) Receivers caught lots of passes; long bombs, short routes, etc... DL guys had  the hand slap action going... OL and DBs did some blitz drills, QB's took the snap then threw sideline bombs, connecting with every receiver during the drill with the exception of one drop by PK who immediately went down grabbing his hammy and limped into the locker room with trainers.

    Miller boomed them all night once again...Adam went 5/6 during full squad work.  Down men in the first unit 3-4 were Green, Traylor, and Warren.  (Big Sey didn't practice again tonight.)  OL and DB players faced off 1:1 where the DB had to get past  the block to touch a cone.  Harrison and Mruckowski had a nice face off... Assante totally faked out Hochstein and got by untouched.  Ty worked in a nice spin move... Hallen totally dominated Poole.  Jennings was back for both Punt Returns and Kickoff Returns.  Klecko played a bit of fullback and Troy donned his blue jersey again tonight.

    Rickey Bryant made a nice jumping grab from Rohan with Assante in tight coverage.... but he also had quite a few misses tonight.  Rohan still holds the ball too long IMO and McGinest would have been all over him in a flash .... Refs threw a few offsides/false start flags... Tedy broke up a deep pass to Pass with a jump and hand swat.. Gessner had a couple of nice grabs tonight.. "Shoeless Joe" Andruzzi left with a trainer with one bare foot...

    At the end of practice, they ran a few lengths of the field then most of the guys went into the locker rooms.  Troy signed quite a bit, Kingsbury signed a couple and left with poster that he got from a fan.  Jennings and Gessner stayed out to play catch.  Brady was sitting on the sideline talking to someone then he made his usual rounds... smiling all the way!

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 9, 2004, Afternoon Session

    Not much to report today as most of the veterans and starters wore shorts and ball caps and did walk through stuff in the left field with Crennel and Weis.  Rosey and Big Stub (#92) did practice with the rest of the team in full pads in the field closest to the stands.

Here's just the Tidbits from today...

• Packed again today! 

• Everyone (vets included) worked on Special Teams stuff; KO returns, onside kicks.. etc.

• Jennings caught a nice sideline bomb....

• Gessner got his hand on the ball a lot today (and not just from his Euro-pal Rohan)...

• Brady did throw a couple of passes during 2 minute work then they went to the FG unit and practiced getting the units on and off the field.

• Lonie did a bit of snapping and when the drill was done  threw a ball through the uprights into the crowd then told security to let the kid keep it.... (Can a payroll deduction be on it's way?)

• Best sight of the day was seeing Belichick go in motion then get down in a three point stance to demonstrate!  Now THAT's a hands on  teacher! hehehe

• TE Zeron Flemister jumped up for a pass, got hit by a defender (Farley) then went down.. He stayed on the field with trainers for awhile then limped off... (PK deja-vu?)

• Rohan rolled out, fell and was slow getting up but was fine.

• Gino and Gil sat just outside of the media tent for most of practice.

• Could someone be reading Mrs. B's mind (or posts for that matter....)  :-)

   

  Here's part of my Report from 8/5:

  BONUS Brady Fact... (but I don't want to be the jinx here...) He's yet to throw an INT in this year's camp..

   

  And here is a reporter's question yesterday:

  Q: How many interceptions have you thrown in camp?
  TB: Don't jinx me. None. Not yet. That is what we are trying to do.

    Wide Receivers signed today and although I rarely go down to the ropes, I wanted to get my  white jersey signed so I got in with the throng... Tedy came by and signed it as well as Nicky's hat (who is here with her parents Denise and Chuck from California.)  It was also  nice to see my girl,  Angie and Josh again today too.  :-)  And although the horn had sounded, Troy and company were still signing when we left to take Jacob to his football practice.

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 10, 2004, Morning Session

    Hit the gym at the crack of dawn then headed home to wake the boys;  Jacob and his two teammates joined me for camp this morning.  For about the first hour the crowd was light, but then  the busses started rolling in!  Jess and Kathy (patsfan4life) both found me and said hi.  The further we get into camp and the closer to the season, there's less and less to report.  Lots of time was spent doing Special Teams and Situational work. In addition to the usual reps with orange caps, they ran a lot of plays with with guys wearing yellow jerseys (to simulate the opposition.)

Here's the dish for today...

• Brady and Rohan worked in the left field with receivers while Kingsbury stayed in the right with the defense and guys in yellow...

• Josh Miller did lots of kickoff work today. (I didn't even notice Adam until the end of practice when it was FG time.)

• Lots of running game work and short passes...Fauria got lots of reps.

• The crowd erupted when Patten caught a long bomb (from 12?) down the sidelines with Law right on him. But later Law tipped a Rohan pass.

• The offensive unit took a lap with Graham and Brady leading the charge.  (I always crack up when the crowd applauds them as they run by... a little salt in the wounds, fellas?)

• QBs worked on perfecting their slide while Law and Harrison did sprints and ST worked on squib kicks.

• Tackle Tim Provost was working on snapping with Miller holding for Adam.

• Brown had a couple of awesome grabs today.. one ending in a tumblesault and one with Harrison in tight.  Rodney was clearly disappointed in himself!

• TBC blocked a field goal.

• The most physical tackling today occurred on the hill where people were literally diving for the ball and piling up... I wonder if the "no holds barred" rule applies at the bottom of that pile?! 

     Defensive Linemen signed today (Traylor is HUGE!)  and Brady made his usual round.  Tedy signed for quite awhile too,  before heading over to play  with his boys...

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 10, 2004, Evening Session

    Tonight's breezy session was the least crowded to date... I actually had a bit of leg room to stretch out!  Hooked up with Scott early on and talked quite a bit. Guys were in shorts, shoulder pads and helmets,, (No cute remarks, Pissah!) Tonight's practice was very similar to this morning's with lots of Situational/Scout team stuff.   The focus was on the passing game  tonight though.  Bethel, Colvin, Faulk, and Traylor didn't practice tonight in addition to the rest of the guys who haven't made it back yet...

    Here are Mrs. B's Scoops for the night:

• I fibbed today when I said that Provost was long snapping...It wasn't him after all and it was really Lonie who was incognito wearing  number 62 again tonight....

• Come to think of it, I haven't noticed Cody Scates out there for a few sessions....

• Kraft spent a lot of time on the sidelines tonight...

• Defense was DOMINANT tonight both as the Patriots and as the Eagles... (although they did take one penalty lap as a unit.... Pepper even joined his boys!)

• Assante Samuel was a key component as he broke up quite a few passes, got two  INTs and lateraled one to Harrison... (Who was pumped about his would be TD!)

• "You Know" Patten (whom you know I love...) made an awesome one handed grab and caught lots of balls tonight..  (It goes without saying that Troy was Troy of course.)

• Buckley was very visible tonight as well and swatted down a Brady bomb to Branch in addition to others.

• Please don't blame me BUT... Brady had his first INT tonight and Law did the honors...picking off a sideline bomb intended for Patten...

• Gessner looked impressive making some nice catches while playing an Eagles WR...

    Guys did quite a bit of sprinting at the end of practice.  Offensive Linemen signed along the ropes... Brady  practiced late throwing to Patten and Jennings... (I thought I saw Troy there too but I'm not positive if it was 10 all along and not 80...) Funny man Matt Light led the rest of the OLine and the crowd in a Bra-dy chant to get him to come over to sign.. then began jumping up and down like one of the (thousands of) Brady Ladies at camp when he started running over! 

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 11, Afternoon Session

    The place was packed as usual but Anna from my board spotted me right away and came over to say hi.  I grabbed my usual hilltop spot near the media tent and Big Al went down front with camera in hand.  Nellie watched part of the practice with the scribes (as did Gil and Gino the other day.)  Not much to report today as they worked once again on game prep for the Eagles dressed in shorts and helmets. It also seemed like most of the work took place closer to the other Endzone. 

Bits and Pieces for today:

• Lonie was back to wearing his usual 66 jersey....but still has his atypical brown hair.

• Colvin was back on the field after taking last night off.

• Big Willie was having quite a ball on the sidelines before practice started; laughing really loud with Phifer, and putting on some dance moves...

• Lots of Punt Return and Kickoff Return work...The four B's shared the PR duty: Brown, Branch, Buckley, Bryant.   I only  noticed Jennings and Patten on KR...(Gotta hit the facilities at some point!)

• Roomies Klecko and Koppen almost got into a brou-ha-ha!

• Law and Harrison always kill time while ST is practicing by running sprints on the left field... and today was no different.   Tedy B and Phifer filled some of their downtime that way today as well then did crunches.

• LB Justin Kurpeikis intercepted Kingsbury and returned it for a TD...

• Catch of the Day:  Brady's deep ball to Patten for a TD...

• Gessner was On Fire today.... until the game was on the line and he missed a Davey pass in the Endzone.... Bummer!

• Over heard...but doubt if it's true:  The Eagles practiced inside Gillette yesterday.

    Special Teams signed today and Brady did his usual rounds.  Davey, Andruzzi, and Light got in on the act too.  Tedy signed for a long time and the crowds were pushing like crazy.  I went down to the ropes (taking my life into my own hands...lol) with Nicky who was hoping for Adam and Brady (of course!)  She did get Adam to sign her hat so she'll be going back to CA happy!  Tedy was walking by to go to sign in the VIP area and spotted me there with my jersey.  He came back and I threw it to him and he signed it (my last unsigned one...) and even added a FTFT! (That's Full Tilt Full Time for those of you who are  Not <*GASP*>Bruschi-Backers!) 

Mrs. B (who will be back on Friday night....Let the Tailgating Begin!)

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 15, 2004

    Headed out to the stadium knowing that the practice was indoors and I would be watching on the Jumbotrons inside Gillette.  It was misty, cold, and raw but no biggie.  Guys were in shorts, helmets and shells and once again I was at the mercy of the camera person so I was limited as to what I could see.  Lots of the shots were in really close so when full squad work was going on, the camera followed the ball.

     There was lots of Special Teams work going on as well as the usual stretching, unit drills, open field tackling, Red Zone and Hurry Up full squad work.

Nothing Earth shattering but here are today's tidbits:

•  BIG SCOOP OF THE DAY: Matt Light practiced!

• I also  noticed Faulk and Gay back in action but TBC wasn't dressed.

• Faulk got lots of reps today, making up for what he missed I guess.

• Branch had lots of good grabs.

• I swear...one of Miller's punts ricocheted off the roof!

• The only thing NOT sharp about Brady are his favorite ratty, gray cutoffs that he favors during practice.

• Rohan SCARES me.... Aside from the one day when I reported that he looked good (I missed the two picks at the other end of the field...) He continually holds the ball too long and would get creamed on too many plays if the pass rush was used at camp.  Poole picked him off today and he threw behind  Bryant missing a sure TD along the sideline.

• Graham was the Go To guy during Red Zone work and had a made lots of catches.

• Klecko got into the endzone but because of the camera delay I'm not sure if he was playing the other side of the ball  or if it was a pick.

• During Hurry Up, Brady put together a nice drive with lots of Graham completions, one break up by Rodney and a final long TD pass to  Patten. (You Know!)

• Faulk made a nice EZ grab in double coverage.

    Guys finished off with lots of sprints.  I'm sure that someone must have signed in the Bank of America plaza but they didn't announce who was scheduled and I didn't bother heading down to see since I wasn't interested in an autograph anyway.

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 16th Morning Session

    Set the alarm to go off at 6:00AM to get in an early run... but the old bod had different ideas as the radio played until 7:30 when I finally got up!  Got to the stadium and found a seat and lo and behold it was right near Stan (Pats726) who's been trying to hook up with me all through camp, and kirjtc2 from Pats Planet. 

    Guys were in full pads and practiced in the indoor facility while we watched from the Bowl.  There were quite a few people watching practice from the bleachers inside... must be the VIP crew (of which I am not one...)  Whomever was on the camera today made me dizzy...panning around like crazy.  Kirsch didn't do any commentary today; either that, or he did but forgot to turn on the speakers!

    Here's the lo-down (at least what I could see!)

• Givens was dressed and practiced fully.

• TBC initially wasn't dressed but then did participate in full squad stuff.

• Towards the end of practice, the camera panned by and I SAW 84 IN UNIFORM!!

• During the stretching, someone on the offensive side was cracking some joke or another because the camera stayed on Tedy for awhile and he was bustin up!

• Noticed that TJ's ankle was wrapped (while working on the sidelines with trainers.)

• Kingsbury took most of the snaps during Scout team work and looked OK but the camera was WAY too late showing the receptions so I missed a lot.

• Dillon was finding every hole.

• Wilfork swatted down a Brady pass.

• Jennings made a nice long sideline diving catch from Davey but not sure if he was out of bounds (late camera.)

• Faulk made a nice grab over the middle in double coverage.

• Rohan's favorite receiver by far, is his NFLE teammate Gessner who made some nice catches but was broken up by Gay on a nice play.

• Lots of Special Teams KR work featuring Faulk and Patten.

• Tedy B had a huge pick and took it to the house.

• Practice ran over by 1/2 hour and they ran through a lot more scout team stuff.

• Dante Scarnecchia ran his windsprints after practice like he does every day.

    On the way out I headed to the ProShop and seeing a very small crowd at the signing area I went out to see who was there.  Patten was signing along with Lonie, Izzo, Bryant (who looks about 16 years old), and Traylor.  I said one of David's favorite quotes (which he wrote on a picture for Jacob a couple of years ago).... "Be so good they can't ignore you!" and he immediately looked up and smiled at me.  I told him it was great to have him back and he said "It's great to be back!"  He signed my hat (which I'll proudly wear), I thanked him, said hello to Lonie then headed home.

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 16, Evening Session

    WOOOOOHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Today was BY FAR my favorite of all of the 2004 TC Sessions!!!  Al and I headed out with the sky looking like rain, fully expecting to be heading into the stadium.  When we got there, we were directed to the club seat parking lot and were pleased to find that practice was on the field!  There were literally only about a couple hundred people there max.  For the first 1/2 hour we were the ONLY ones standing on the grass!  We were even able to stand the entire time without blocking people... (just like Bryant!)   They switched up the fields (in order to preserve the grass I'm sure) and the Endzones now face the bleachers  with the sidelines towards the grass. 

    There was a lot of intensity and there was something for EVERYONE at tonight's session.... joking, fights, hazings...etc...and of course football!  Guys were in shorts, shoulder pads and helmets but there was some nice contact tonight.  It was misting through most of practice but started raining by the end.

Here are  Mrs. B's Scoops:

• Big Al and I were sporting our Bruschi Backer Hoodies and Vrabel noticed them and said something to Tedy.  He must have told him who we were and gave us a big wave across the field.

• Fauria and Givens weren't dressed tonight.  Bethel was in pads but went with the rest of the walking wounded to the field house.  Jarvis and Ashworth were back.

• After the initial walkthrough stuff, Tedy called for a huddle and the entire team met in the middle of the field.  A lone #84 emerged, ran over to the crowd and proclaimed "My name is Benjamin Watson,  a tight end out of The University of Georgia,"  to which the crowd applauded and the guys laughed their butts off!!  (Wait until he sees the crowds of thousands tomorrow!)

• During drills, Pepper was throwing bombs for the LBs & DBs to practice INTs.  You can tell that he still really loves to be out there getting his hands on the ball!  The punt/kick/snap guys worked on dropping on loose balls to protect them.   LBs and RBs did a one on one passing situation drill which was intense.

• Adam was practicing punting. (I haven't noticed Miller doing any field goals though.)

• Faulk, Branch and Buckley returned punts.

• Watson made some grabs during QB/TE drills.

• Lots of scout team stuff all night (but a lot was on the other end of the field...) Some plays of note:  Brady connected with Branch for a nice long bomb.  Nice coverage by Samuel in breaking  up a long pass to Brown in the corner EZ.  Mayer made a nice pick of a KK pass.

• Tedy and Big Willie were especially vocal and animated and wanted to do some hitting tonight...  I could hear them hooting and hollering all night, and even heard a "POW!" come from Tedy when he held back from tackling full out.

• During one series, one of the guys went up for a pass, (wearing a yellow scout jersey so I didn't see the number but I think it was Jennings and Al thinks it may have been Gessner) and when he came down, he was sandwiched between two defenders... The next thing I knew, punches were flying, guys were rolling on the ground and the rest of the guys were in the pile pulling it apart.  Now, the punch came from someone wearing sweats... so... it was either Rodney or T-Buck... Hmmmmm, If I had to put my money on one of them.... guess who I would pick?!

• Marquise Hill took a lap.

• When they periods changed, Tedy B was running full steam ahead and punched a football out of a ball boy's hands... (Silly boy!)

• Faulk was upset at one point when things were getting heated up and I could hear him yelling something about "playing with the big boys..."

• Big Willie was taunting the little receivers he was assigned to cover and was yucking it up out there.

• Rohan was throwing bullets... too bad they were into the stands.

• Dillon and Faulk were running tons of "Gassers" tonight.

• Pass and Warren almost got into it.  I kept hearing one of the coaches yelling, "Pass, Pass" and thought they were talking about a play at first until I realized...lol!

• At the end of practice during the final sprints, guys were all being goofy and vocal; Faulk was hanging on to Rodney's jersey.  Guys were yelling different things out (busting on Marcus the conditioning guy) and someone called to Tedy and he ran diagonally across the field to get there. 

    At the final huddle... the catcalls of "Rookies!, Rookies!, Rookies!" could be heard and they all went to the far end of the the other field.  The Annual Rookie Slip and Slide took place and I could see them through the vets legs on the ground sliding down the field!  The guys were cheering and laughing like crazy.  By now the rain was really coming down but at the end, Tedy came right over to see us and sign for the fans.  We took our annual TC picture and he tried to sign people's items but because of the rain, the only thing that would work was cloth.  DB's were assigned to sign and stopped mostly at the VIP area.  Eric Mangini noticed a boy with Down's Syndrome on the side of us and called his whole unit over to sign his jersey.  (I LOVED THAT... guess it really is  time for me to be getting back to school to see my kids...!)    Rodney came by and I didn't want anything signed but I did get to tell him how much I enjoyed his stint on NFL Total Access a few weeks back. (That was one of my goals of TC!)  We took a picture together, then we headed home.  I smiled all the way home... in that nostalgic way of mine... just like the good old days at TC!

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 17, 2004 Afternoon Session

    Got to the stadium around 2:00 and ended up parking right near the marker of the infamous KICK in the parking lot.  Boy do I have no sense of direction.... as I totally didn't expect it to be where it was!  It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon and the place was quite full but not uncomfortably packed.  Guys were in full pads  and the focus of the day was scout team work and lots of kick off coverage. The defense certainly dominated this afternoon.

Mrs. B's Notes:

• Bethel and Givens were back in action.  Troy wasn't dressed and I didn't see Law at all.  The rest of the "regulars" headed to the fieldhouse as always.

• Last night's Rookie Slip and Slide must have evolved into the Annual Rookie Makeover Night as there were lots of bald heads, Mohawks, (and God... I don't even know what to call Sawyer's little bush on the BACK of his head) looks out there today.

• There was a new Tight End on the field wearing #41.

• On the way into the stadium Al and I saw two huge military helicopters getting ready to land.  Turns out they did so in the parking lot and about a dozen soldiers took in practice with Mr. Kraft from the sidelines.

• Big Willie joined Phifer and Bruschi in the Gassers and Crunches session. (Harrison ran alone in the other field and threw in some pushups.)

• There was some physical 7:7 work and at one point Faulk came flying over the top.

• I liked watching the open field tackling drills where  two players started off laying on their backs then they jump up and the  ball carrier tries to elude the tackler.

• The WR drill where they catch balls running around the 4 cones set up in a square took on a new twist today as they ran diagonally as well.

• Catch of the Day:  Long bomb from Brady to Patten over the middle beating Gay on scout defense. Runner up: Brady to Givens on a diving catch.

• LOTS of picks today... Samuel had two (Brady, Davey) , Harrison one (Davey), Seymour nearly picked Brady, but couldn't hold on to the ball that was intended for Faulk.  Mayer robbed Kingsbury on a diving grab.

• Faulk, Bethel, Jennings and Patten returned kicks.

• Big Willie is adopting Harrison's move of going after the RB after the play to punch the ball away, but Dillon hung on.

• Tedy didn't finish the last few series as he went to the sidelines to ice his elbow.

    Practice went right to 4:30 and ended after a long huddle.  Wide Receivers signed as well as Vrabel, Bruschi, and Brady.  Here's hoping that Jessica got her Birthday Brady Encounter today. :-)

See the rest of today's pictures here. (TC Gallery 3)

August 18, 2004 Final Session

    Well, it's hard to believe that I'm actually posting my Final TC Report of the season!  Today was originally supposed to be a double but the schedule was changed last night to a single practice at 2:30.  Al and I cut it close and got there just as it started because I had made appointments during the day based on the original time frame.  I was still able to grab my usual perch at the top of the hill although Al's favorite photography spot near the ropes was full.  Stan was sitting close by... and don't you know... the cutie patootie that I was playing with happened to be  BuddyLove's baby daughter, Hadley! (I'm still such a mommy! :-) )  I also talked to a couple of the reporters  who admitted to reading Mrs. B on KFFL...lol!  Scott, who runs some of the players' websites came by to talk for awhile and say goodbye too.  Enough of my rambling... on to the report:

    Guys were in shorts, shoulder pads and helmets and once again, there was a lot of scout team and special teams work.    The guys were very loud, hooting and hollering all afternoon.   The entire defensive unit,  led by Big Willie  began  "WHOOOOOO"ing every time they dominated  and the offensive unit  reciprocated  when they came out on top.

Here are the last of Mrs. B's Scoops:

• Erdoboy, I'm pleased to announce that TJ was dressed and participated fully in today's practice.  Here's hoping that his first and last session attendance will be enough to keep your boy  here.

• I didn't see Law or Stubblefield again today.  Troy was back practicing as was Stokes.

• The Mohawk crew were sporting the full  KoJack look today having lost the last of their hair.

• During Scout team stuff, some things of note:  Branch made a nice jumping catch on a bomb from Rohan. Faulk had a nice gain up the middle on a direct snap. Watson participated fully and made a few catches and a particularly a nice one in traffic.  CB Troy Brown jumped up and broke up a nice pass to big guy Stokes. 

• Would Be Catch of the Day:  A tightly covered (Samuel) sideline dive by Givens but was just out of bounds.

• I MISS HUARD!

• Wilson intercepted Kingsbury.

• Cloud was today's recipient of Harrison's Ball-Stripping-After-the-Play technique... and wasn't happy!

• Play of the Day:  Brady's naked bootleg faking out the whole defense..... then walked in slowly and spiked the ball.

• Ball boys kicked field goals at the end of practice.

• At the very end of practice, the entire team's future rode on Matt Light's shoulders....and he took one for the team.   His field goal attempt looked more like a squib kick... and Kevin Faulk fell down on the ground laughing so hard!  They must have upped the ante as he set up to return a punt as the whole team gathered around.  He fielded one of Miller's bombs and the entire team charged him and screamed for joy.  They huddled up and in his "HowDoWeFeelAboutAVictory?!" mode, I could hear Tedy yell "HowDoWeFeelAboutGoingHome?!"  To which they naturally responded:   "OOOOOHHHHHHH YEAHHHHHH!!"

Light gets into position...

And...he... MAKES THE CATCH!!

I DID IT!! I DID IT!!

WOOOOHOOOOO!!! Matt saves the day!