FOXBORO, Mass. — Some leftover notes and nuggets from Friday’s New England Patriots media availability at Gillette Stadium:
— Tom Brady didn’t stay up to catch the end of Thursday night’s American League Championship Series clincher, but he’s happy to see the Boston Red Sox headed to the World Series for the fourth time since 2004.
“I’m glad they won,” Brady said. “That was pretty cool. … Boston’s got it pretty good right now. Got a lot of good teams.”
That it does. Beginning with the Super Bowl title the Patriots won in Brady’s second season, Boston’s four major sports teams have combined to win 10 championships since 2001: five by the Pats, three by the Red Sox and one each by the Bruins and Celtics.
“It’s been a lot of fun for all of us, for all of these teams, to kind of be a part of winning in your own team but being there to kind of celebrate everyone else’s wins, too,” Brady said. “I’ve had a lot of friends on all those teams over the years, and it’s great to see everyone playing well. To see the Red Sox doing what they’re doing, that was (great).
“When I first got here in 2000, they had some good teams and really broke through, just like we did, and it’s been a lot of fun ever since.”
Patriots coach Bill Belichick also expressed excitement over the Red Sox’s American League title.
— Wide receiver Julian Edelman will be pulling for the Red Sox, as well, especially if they face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series.
Edelman, like Brady, was raised in the Bay Area, so he’s always supported the San Francisco Giants — the Dodgers’ primary rival.
“I hate the Dodgers,” Edelman said. “I’m a San Francisco guy, so it’s like Boston-New York diet over there. But I hope they do make it and the Sox pound them”
— Edelman has sported a playoff-level beard since he returned from suspension in Week 5. He gave a simple explanation for the distinctive look:
— Edelman dropped an out-of-nowhere “Home Alone” quote while describing one of the Chicago Bears cornerbacks he’ll face this Sunday.
“Got another Fuller this week,” the veteran wideout said. “Fuller every week. ‘Go easy on the Pepsi, Fuller.’ ”
Edelman matched up against Kansas City Chiefs corner Kendall Fuller this past Sunday. This week, he’ll see Kyle Fuller of the Bears.
— The Patriots are seeking their first road win of the season. They’re 3-0 at Gillette Stadium but 0-2 away from home, suffering ugly losses to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions in Weeks 2 and 3.
Multiple players this week have preached the importance of starting fast. The Patriots fell behind 14-0 against the Jaguars and 13-0 against the Lions and could not climb out of those early holes.
“I mean, we’ve got to play better on the road, no doubt about that,” tight end Rob Gronkowski said Thursday. “We’ve got to go out there with a fast start, we’ve got to get going, we’ve got to get first downs, we’ve got to get the ball moving, we’ve got to get the chains moving. We really didn’t do that, I would say, on the road in the first two games. We’ve got to pick it up, and we’ve got to definitely play better.”
Edelman, who was suspended for both of those losses, said he’s excited to take the field in enemy territory at Soldier Field.
“I like being the villain,” he said. “Everyone needs a bad guy. I’ll be the bad guy.”
