FOXBORO, Mass — In quite literally the first conversation Bill Belichick had with Cordarrelle Patterson, the New England Patriots head coach told him, “We’re going to make you the player that you should be.”
We may be seeing the type of player Patterson is supposed to be.
Since coming to the Patriots in a trade from the Oakland Raiders this past offseason, Patterson has become New England’s jack of all trades, serving as a running back, wide receiver and kick returner, fulfilling a variety of duties within those roles.
It’s not often Belichick heaps tons of praise on one of his current players, but during Wednesday’s press conference, Belichick was asked if Patterson’s solid performance has surprised him at all this season. In response, he wasn’t short on good things to say.
“Well, again, anytime you get a new player, I don’t know if you exactly what you’re getting,” Belichick said. “But, he’s been a good player with two different organizations, in the kicking game and offensively, and he’s done a lot of things for the Vikings and the Raiders. You know, he ran the ball, he caught it, he ran with it, he returned it, he covered kicks, he blocked — he has a lot of skill and he’s a big guy that can run, he’s tough and he shows up every day.
“So, we thought we were getting that, that’s what we got and we’ve used him in different ways,” Belichick added. “He’s embraced it, he’s worked hard to learn and accept different roles and he’s done them well. So, he’s been a pleasure to coach, he’s been a great addition to our team and he’s given us a lot of versatility, and times where we’ve really needed him to step in and help us, and he has.”
This season, Patterson has caught 13 passes for 120 yards with two touchdowns, while also carrying the ball 37 times for 156 yards and one touchdown. He’s averaging 30.9 yards on his 17 kick returns this season, while taking one to the house on a 95-yard dash.
