Step aside Brandon Tate, there's a new fan favorite on the Patriots special teams unit.
Believe it or not, it's offensive lineman, Dan Connolly, who has been named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week by the National Football League.
Connolly returned a kickoff 71 yards to the 4-yard line in the second quarter during the Patriots’ 31-27 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football.
Connolly’s honor is the first Special Teams Player of the Week for the Pats since kicker Stephen Gostkowski bagged the award in Week 9 of the 2009 season for drilling four field goals. Connolly happens to be just the second offensive lineman to ever be named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week. Oakland Raiders’ tackle Langston Walker won the award in Week 12 of the 2004 season after blocking a field goal attempt.
