All 325 pounds of Vince Wilfork took over at quarterback at Monday's practice, leading the defense to a victory over the offense.
Afterward, Wes Welker thought Wilfork took a little too much time in surveying the field, saying, "We're going to get a stopwatch on how long he had to throw back there."
On Tuesday in Atlana, Wilfork fired back, going as far to say that he just might be the best quarterback on the roster.
"Tom [Brady] has the same amount of time," he told reporters. "Seven-on-seven is seven-on-seven. I actually went back and watched film. I saw Tom and [Brian] Hoyer, the backup quarterbacks, doing the same thing, holding the ball for four or five seconds. Hey, I counted the time. I was holding the ball four or five seconds. I’m ready to play with them. I showed them some skills back there."
When asked if he'd be competing for the starting quarterback job, Wilfork joked that his skills aren't comparable to the "other" quarterbacks.
"I’m not in competition with those guys," he said. "I’m just setting my accolades right up next to them as they talk."
While Wilfork spoke in jest, he did explain how lighthearted drills help fuel the players' competitive fires.
"We joke about it, but everybody was on that field playing, everybody wanting to win," he said. "That’s what it all comes back down to — wanting to win, wanting to compete. But it was a fun way of competing, but at the same time everybody had that one goal: they wanted to win. I’m pretty sure Randy Moss is pissed off with me right now because they didn’t win. I’m just happy.
"Like I said," Wilfork continued, "we like to have fun. It’s training camp, but every now and then Bill [Belichick] gives us a little fun time and we take advantage of it."
