It was a little more like Wetlanta than Hotlanta when the Patriots and Falcons practiced together Tuesday morning in Flowery Branch, Ga.
Temperatures were in the mid-80s, which was apparently 20-30 degrees cooler than the Falcons have been used to during training camp, and a misty rain fell from the overcast skies.
"It wasn’t too hot out," Patriots quarterback Tom Brady told reporters after the first practice of the day. "I think we brought some of that Boston weather down here."
The teams practiced in shorts and shoulder pads for about two hours and 10 minutes, according to a Patriots spokesman, and that’s roughly 25-40 minutes longer than the Patriots' typical session of camp. However, the teams took a five-minute water break in the middle of practice, which is routine for the Falcons, who try to prevent injury or illness in the heat.
"Practice is practice, regardless of what the schedule is or what the weather is," Patriots safety Patrick Chung said on a conference call. "You still have to put your pads on and run around. It is kind of like adjusting to playing a game. You have to be ready for it."
Counting Tuesday's pair of joint practices with the Falcons, the Patriots have conducted five of their last eight practices with another team, including three sessions last week with the Saints. Eventually, that figures to help the Patriots progress at a more rapid rate through camp.
"I think it is really good to get [an understanding of] how they actually play," Pats right guard Stephen Neal said on a conference call. "We get to practice against that before we see them in the game, so I think that’s really going to help us out."
