Patriots Amendola Has a Memorable First Night at Gillette
Tom Brady celebrates with Danny Amendola following his TD reception Friday night. (USA TODAY Images)
After Friday night's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Gillette Stadium, it's safe to say the Danny Amendola era has officially begun in New England.
Amendola hit the home field for the first time on Friday night and had his biggest performance of the preseason so far, catching six passes for 71 yards along with a touchdown during the Patriots 25-21 win over Tampa Bay to improve to 2-0 in exhibition play.
It was his first time playing in front of a full house at home, and the veteran told CSNNE's Mary Paoletti that he was impressed with what he saw.
Amendola's 1st home game, tho preseason. He digs it:"It was fun. I loved it. The fans are great. Great atmosphere. The stadium's beautiful."
— Mary Paoletti (@Mary_Paoletti) August 17, 2013
Amendola made several athletic catches in this one, and then showed his speed and acceleration when he split the Buccaneers defense and hauled in a 26-yard touchdown to put the Patriots up early in the first quarter. Those attributes are exactly the reason why the Patriots brought him here and if he can end his string of injuries that have plagued him in recent years, he's definitely going to be an exciting player to watch in this offense.
Following the play Brady met him in the endzone and the veteran quarterback seemed pretty fired up, and hopefully it's the first of many more to come.
Amendola now has 7 catches for 77 yards along with his touchdown through New England's first two games.
Miss Amendola's touchdown play? You can see a video of it at Patriots.com.