FOXBORO, Mass. — Chris Long spent his first eight NFL seasons with the St. Louis Rams before being released this winter and signing a one-year deal with the New England Patriots.
Since Long is joining a new organization for the first time since his rookie season, it could take a while for him to get acclimated. Fortunately, he has found the perfect person to follow around — Patriots defensive captain and fellow defensive end Rob Ninkovich.
“Rob and I really clicked,” Long said Thursday after the first Patriots organized team activities session open to the media. “We’ve got a lot of similarities, and he’s a great guy to learn from and shadow. He’s been here obviously a long time. Rob knows how to do things the right way around here. When you see a guy like that, if you’re halfway smart, you follow him around and do what he does. If Rob goes to lunch, I go to lunch. That type of thing. Rob’s a good buddy already.”
Ninkovich echoed those sentiments last week.
“Chris is a great guy,” Ninkovich said. “He’s excited to be here and to just jump into the Patriot Way. I know (the) previous location was tough for him, so I just said to him, ‘Hey man, you come here and get to work, and we’ll start winning football games.’ ”
New England’s offseason workout program only has been going on for the past month, so Long still hasn’t nailed down the differences between the Patriots and Rams.
“Well, I’m still learning, so I can’t make the determination yet,” Long said. “Ask me again during training camp.”
The defensive end, who has 54.5 sacks since coming into the league as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, already is speaking like a Patriot.
“Every day in the NFL is an opportunity,” Long siad. “A coach I’ve had before said every day is an interview, and that’s how I like to look at things. Every day, you have a chance to get better and learn and worry about your own — farm your own land and do all that good stuff. That’s the way I approach everything. It would be a disservice to the other guys if I was worried about anything other than myself, that opportunity just to get out here on the practice field and compete and get better.”
Long joins a crowded and talented group of defensive ends, which also includes Ninkovich, Jabaal Sheard, Trey Flowers, Geneo Grissom and Rufus Johnson. Long signed shortly after the Patriots traded Chandler Jones to the Arizona Cardinals and likely will fill a situational role while Sheard takes over as a starter.
Thumbnail photo via Doug Kyed/NESN
