FOXBORO, Mass. — Trash talk is quite common during New England Patriots spring practices behind Gillette Stadium. During those two hours of organized team activities or minicamp, the offense and defense are more foes than teammates.
And the player talking the most smack is also the oldest and most experienced on the roster. Tom Brady might be 39 years old and entering his 18th NFL season, but the competitive fire still burns bright inside the Patriots’ starting quarterback.
“No, it’s definitely Tom,” safety Devin McCourty said Wednesday after Day 2 of minicamp. “No doubt about it, it’s Tom. Whether he’s or he’s on the sideline, he’s probably the No. 1 guy talking. And we have fun with it. That’s a part of this time of year, competing and talking trash. It helps everyone raise their level.”
And once practice is over, they all go back to being teammates again.
“We’ll laugh and joke in the locker room, but out here we get after it pretty well,” McCourty said. “This will lead right into training camp, but off the field and inside the locker room, we’re all really close and we get along, but it gets going out here. And it should. I think everyone’s out here fighting for a spot, trying to improve each day, and right now it’s offense vs. defense. We’re going to compete and go at each other. It’s harder to find a balance now than it is when we get closer to the season.”
McCourty wouldn’t pick out any choice phrases from his quarterback.
“No, we don’t want to quote,” McCourty said. “We gotta keep that stuff inside the white lines.”
The Patriots’ defense got the best of the offense Tuesday during minicamp with rain pelting the players. Brady and the offense were much better Wednesday as the starting QB completed 24 of 32 passes during team drills.
Thumbnail photo via Kevin Hoffman/USA TODAY Sports Images
