David Andrews was introduced to the “Patriot Way” very early into his New England tenure.
The veteran center recently summed up the franchise’s philosophy with an anecdote shared on Barstool Sports’ “Surf & Turf Podcast.” Andrews, who joined the Patriots as an undrafted free agent back in 2015, was forced to face the consequences after making a mistake during spring practices, but he wasn’t the only one who took on the punishment.
“I remember the first time stepping on the practice field for like OTA practice and like seeing him (Tom Brady) run out on the field, I was just like, ‘Wow,’ ” Andrews recalled. “We’re sitting there taking snaps and I fumble a snap, and you gotta run a lap. I’m sitting there running a lap with him and I’m just kind of like, ‘Damn, I just made this guy run a lap.’ He had to run one with me because we fumbled a snap. It was just kind of like at that point like one, all right, the details matter here. Like, everything is important. Two, there’s no sacred people. I should have been the one running, not Tom. It was obviously my fault.”
One has to imagine Andrews is itching to strap the pads back on. The 27-year-old missed the entire 2019 season due to a health issue but recently noted he’s “optimistic” about playing in 2020. Whether he’s snapping the ball to Brady, however, remains to be seen.