FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots’ locker room is a melting pot. It doesn’t matter if you’re human or not, so long as you do your job.
For instance, quarterback Tom Brady confirmed Wednesday when asked about his rather robotic responses to questions about the Indianapolis Colts that he’s indeed “a human.” Defensive end Rob Ninkovich, on the other hand, claimed his own life transcends the boundaries of normal existence.
“I’m not human,” Ninkovich joked when asked how a player can put aside human feelings when gearing up for an emotional football game against a rival opponent. “I’m really just going to keep working on myself. I feel like I haven’t played my best ball yet, so I’ve got to just continue to work and continue to improve, constantly improve.”
Not human, huh? Just how long have you known about this, Rob?
“A long time,” Ninkovich said, drawing laughter from a group of reporters assembled in front of his Gillette Stadium locker. “I’ve done some superhuman things at times.”
This is true. Ninkovich was a key member of the defense last season when the Patriots won their fourth Super Bowl title, so perhaps there is something otherworldly to his game. His gift could be on display this weekend when the Patriots travel to Indiana, the state where Ninkovich turned heads in college.
“Yeah, I was a superhuman hero back in my old Purdue days,” Ninkovich said. “I don’t know what character I was.”
The details of Ninkovich’s superhuman prowess, of course, are limited. In fact, come to think of it, he might just be a good football player despite his claims. Either way, he knows what superpower he’d most like to have if given the choice.
“I would like regeneration,” Ninkovich said. “That would be awesome if that could be factual, but it’s not. I don’t regenerate. Sorry.”
Apology accepted, Rob. Just be careful around the humans, like Brady and wide receiver Danny Amendola.
“I’m human. I make mistakes. I don’t know about Rob,” Amendola said Wednesday. “I’m going to go kick him in the shin, see if he’s human or not.”
One would imagine a shin kick will hurt no matter what. But then again, that’s the human in me talking.
Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
