Price: Patriots legend Kevin Faulk, impressed by Dion Lewis’ early-season performance

Faulk, who coaches high school football in Louisiana, reacted with some surprise when he’s asked if he’s seen Lewis play this year.

“Of course I’ve seen him,” Faulk said with a laugh when reached by phone in Louisiana.

“He’s been doing real well,” Faulk said of Lewis. “The one thought I had when I first saw him was ‘Where had he been the last few years?’ Then you start to hear the stories about how he was injured the last few seasons, how he’s struggled to come back. But to see the way he’s performed over the last few games, it’s been great to watch. He’s clearly been working hard to get back into the game, and it looks like it’s paid off for him.”

Brought in as a replacement for the likes of Shane Vereen and initially thought to be in a competition with Travaris Cadet and James White, Faulk said Lewis did a nice job staying consistent and “carving out a niche” in the New England offense.

“When it comes to carving out a niche for yourself, its all a mindset,” Faulk said. “I can’t tell you what sort of role they envision for him going forward — that’s all on his shoulders. I can tell you that when I was in there, it was all about making the most of your chances. I tried to make my mark when he got my opportunity. It looks like he’s doing the same this time around.”

While Lewis’ production through the first three weeks has been the biggest surprise for the 2015 Patriots, one area where he’s occasionally struggled is ball security. Lewis has fumbled twice and lost one this year. Faulk had an issue with the same thing as a young player — he had 11 fumbles his first three seasons in the league. Over the final five years of his career, Faulk had just two.

“He’ll be fine,” Faulk said when asked about Lewis’ issues with ball security. “You have to concentrate on it, but you can’t let something like that be all-consuming, you know? You have to think about it when you touch the ball and you’re working on the practice field. You have to tuck and stay safe.

“At the end of the day, you just have to play the game and let everything else take care of itself. It’s one of the things you have to focus on, but just play the game. He’s talented enough where it will take care of itself. Just don’t let it take over his thought process, and he’ll be OK.”

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Nikolai said:

That's pretty cool.

There will never be another Kevin Faulk in my book, but so far, I like what Lewis has done. Time will tell if he can keep it up or if he even sticks around. I hope so.

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