Patriots Veteran Gives Blunt Advice To Special Teams Hopefuls

FOXBORO, Mass. — It’s not an easy task to crack an NFL roster as a specialist, but if there was ever an organization to attempt doing it with, it’s the New England Patriots.

You know the names.

Matthew Slater, Sam Aiken, Nate Ebner, Justin Bethel, Cody Davis, Gunner Olszewski and Brenden Schooler are a few of the notable examples to make their bones almost exclusively on special teams for the Patriots. It’s a long-standing tradition in New England, with a new crop of players attempting to become the next in line every single season.

The 2023 crop, which looks pretty hefty after the first day of training camp, received some advice from a player who completed the journey they all hope to take.

“Win,” Patriots safety Adrian Phillips said Wednesday. “Win in everything that you can. When I first came into the league, that’s what they told me. They said, ‘There’s no friends on the field. We might be cool in the locker room, we might rock around with each other, but when we’re out there on the field it’s me against you. I got to feed my family, you got to feed yours.’ The mindset when you step on that field is win by any means necessary. …

“Be willing to do everything that other people aren’t willing to do. If you’ve got to be a scout-team dummy for a period, do it to the best of your ability. If you only get two reps, make sure they’re the best that they can be. If you’ve got to meet with the coaches after (practice) just to feel like you got that one-on-one time, get that. Do everything you can, because if you don’t make it you don’t want to say ‘What if?’ “

“There’s no friends on the field. … When we’re out there on the field, it’s me against you. I got to feed my family, you got to feed yours.”

Patriots safety Adrian Phillips

The Patriots filled their roster this offseason with players that will compete to have legitimate roles on offense or defense. There are a number of veterans and rookies fighting for those spots, leaving a select few to do what they can to steal one of the remaining jobs available via special teams.

Slater, Davis, Schooler, Raleigh Webb and DaMarcus Mitchell all return after serving as special teamers last season. Chris Board was brought on board due to his history as a standout teamer with the Baltimore Ravens and Detroit Lions.

Those are just the veterans who have a leg up.

Diego Fagot, Isaiah Bolden, Ameer Speed, Demario Douglas and Jourdan Heilig all spent the majority of training camp’s opening day working on special teams. Bolden and Speed have the makeup of the Patriots’ typical gunners, while Douglas spent time returning kicks.

Heilig, however, stood out. The rookie out of Appalachian State spent the majority of practice getting 1-on-1 work in with Slater, the Patriots’ longest-tenured player and a could-be Hall of Famer at the position. He received extra attention from special teams coach Cam Achord and assistant head coach Joe Judge, as well. If you’re looking for a leader in the clubhouse to nab one of those final roster spots, he might be it.

We listed 11 players for what will likely amount to three or four roster spots. That’s the life of a special teamer, so it might be time to listen up when a veteran like Phillips is talking.