FOXBORO, Mass. — Some leftover notes and nuggets from Wednesday’s New England Patriots media availability at Gillette Stadium:
— Thanks to some unfortunate scheduling by Major League Baseball, first pitch for Game 2 of the American League Championship Series between the Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. ET on Sunday night — just an hour and change before the Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs are set to hit the field for the most anticipated game of the NFL season thus far.
“That’s pretty nuts,” Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski said. “But you know Boston sports fans. They’re going to have two TVs: the Red Sox game right there and the Patriots game right there. And you know probably (at) halftime of our game, the Red Sox game will be up.
“You’ve got to give them credit. Boston fans, New England fans, they’re diehard fans, not just for football, but for every sport around here. So you know they’ll find a way to watch both.”
The demands of NFL life have prevented Gronkowski from taking in too much baseball this fall, but he had high praise for the Red Sox after they eliminated the New York Yankees in dramatic fashion Tuesday night.
“I don’t have a chance to really catch it all,” he said. “I see a couple innings here and there, but it’s just spectacular how they’re playing just together as a team and just putting up the runs they need. It’s cool to see them succeeding the way they’re doing.”
— Bill Belichick’s take on the Sox’s four-game triumph in the American League Division Series?
“Yeah, a good series,” the Patriots coach deadpanned.
Thanks for that, Bill.
— Belichick and the Patriots have raved about Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill’s speed this week, but this might be Hill’s most notable endorsement yet:
Patriots wideout Phillip Dorsett, who ran a 4.28-second 40-yard dash at his pre-draft pro day and is, at the very least, one of the two or three fastest players on the Pats’ roster, said he’s never seen anyone move as quickly as Hill.
“Nobody has his speed,” Dorsett told NESN.com’s Darren Hartwell. “I won’t say this about everybody, because I’m real particular about speed: He’s the fastest person in the NFL. You’ve got to give it to him. I’ve never seen anybody pick ‘em up and put ‘em down like that.”
Simulating Hill’s speed in practice has been a challenge for the Patriots. Dorsett, who leads all New England wideouts with 19 catches this season, has assisted in that effort.
“I always do a little bit on scout team every week, because I can get some extra reps,” the fourth-year pro said. “It’s something that I enjoy doing, giving the defense good looks. I play a little bit of everybody. I don’t just play one person. We all know he’s a really fast guy, so hopefully we all give good looks this week.”
