FOXBORO, Mass. — Patriots running back Fred Taylor is 34 years old and coming off an ankle injury that severely restricted his 2009 season and even held him back this offseason.
He's a likely Hall of Famer and definitely the greatest player in Jaguars history, so the legacy is set. Still, Taylor wanted to return to New England for another season, and he was asked Thursday what keeps him going at this point in his career.
"What keeps me going?" Taylor said. "I really like playing football. It's hard to use that word 'love' like some guys do because there will be some point when I have to divorce the game or it will divorce me. I really can't say I love it like that, but I like it a hell of a lot. The camaraderie with the fellas and just competing, that’s what it's all about."
Taylor hasn't really stuck out much during training camp, and his roster spot is not a certainty due to a crowded Patriots backfield. He's probably in direct competition with BenJarvus Green-Ellis for the fourth and final roster spot among running backs, and for Taylor to keep an edge on the youngster, he's going to have to cure his case of the drops, which have plagued him since the spring.
Taylor said he doesn’t overreact to those mistakes anymore — 12 years in the league help him put things in perspective — but he's not exactly proud of them. Taylor's passion for the game keeps him going in the big picture, but in a more narrow focus, the grind of trying to improve on a daily basis keeps him going in the short-term.
"I'm pissed, too," Taylor said about the drops. "I hate it. You want to be as close to perfect as you can. I hate dropping a pass, but I work on it. I work at it, catching the Jugs [machine] and do what I need to do to get better in that area. I always have. You want to be hard on yourself, [but] not to the point where it carries over to the next play or the next practice. It's not the end of the world, but you do want to try to practice consistency in the areas that aren’t necessarily your strongpoint."
