Monday Patriots Notebook 4/20: Garoppolo 'Looks Like a Linebacker', Hightower's Offseason 'Kind of a Bummer', More Notes
Jimmy Garoppolo showed a lot of promise in his first season in New England.
A quick rundown of some news and notes for this morning:
HIGH PRAISE FOR GAROPPOLO FROM BELICHICK:
Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has shown a pretty solid work ethic in his first year in New England and in a recent interview with WEEI his throwing coach, Jeff Christensen, talked about a recent conversation he had with head coach Bill Belichick at the scouting combine.
"I talked to Bill (Belichick) at the combine, and I asked him how Jimmy was doing," Christensen told WEEI.com via NFL.com. "He said '(Jimmy) looks like a linebacker. He works out like a linebacker. He acts like a linebacker. I really like him a lot, coach. You did a great job with him. Thank you.' "
That's high praise from a coach who takes a lot of pride in the linebacker group and clearly he thinks a lot of Garoppolo, whom the team surprised everyone by using a second round pick on during last year's NFL Draft. Garoppolo started off slow during training camp last season but finished the preseason a respectable 46-of-79 for 618 yards and five touchdowns, along with one interception. He saw limited action last season, appearing at the end of the team's blowout loss against Kansas City in Week 4 where he finished 6-of-7 for 70 yards and one touchdown, and also during the team's blowout win over the Bears in Week 8 where he went 3-of-3 for 22-yards. He also saw time in the regular season finale in a meaningless game against the Bills, where he finished 10-of-17 for 90 yards.
Not bad for a rookie who showed a lot of poise in his first season, and he had the benefit of watching a veteran like Tom Brady guide his team to their fourth Super Bowl Championship. If he makes it that far, those same expectations could one day fall on his shoulders, but for now Christensen said Garoppolo is just continuing to work hard heading into 2015.
"I think he did very well," Christensen told the radio station on his first year. "Over the first two weeks of camp he didn't look good, but I think over the third and fourth week of the preseason, he made real improvement, and that's what Bill wants to see. Jimmy is a smart kid who just wants to learn, and he's well aware of how good a situation he's in right now."
HIGHTOWER'S OFFSEASON 'KIND OF BEEN A BUMMER':
Patriots linebacker Dont'a Hightower hasn't exactly been able to enjoy his offseason as he continues recovering from offseason shoulder surgery, which instead of celebrating his team's championship has left him forced to spend his offseason doing rehab and trying to get ready for 2015.
He told the Boston Herald that a lot of the things he normally does during the offseason he's not able to do, and it's been a little disappointing from that standpoint.
“Yeah, it’s kind of been a bummer, not being able to do a lot of stuff I want to do right now,” Hightower told Karen Gurgian in a recent phone interview. “I can’t fish, I can’t go to the (driving) range. . . . So that’s another reason to get back to rehab.”
Hightower also said that coming off of a Super Bowl he's decided to be more active in the community in appreciation for the fans who cheered them on, as well as in honor of one of his friends, who Hightower said passed away last year.
“I just decided, coming off a Super Bowl win, seeing how good the fans are here and seeing how much Mr. (Robert) Kraft and my other teammates give back to the community, I felt like it was time for me to step up and try to do a little bit more than what I’ve done in the past,” Hightower said. “Also, it goes back to one of my buddies that passed away a year ago, (DeShaun Greer), he was always giving back. One thing I felt with him not available, was each year, try to give back a little bit more, to kind of have that part of him living through me.”
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- For anyone who caught the Academy of Country Music awards Sunday night, the rest of the world continues to poke fun at the Patriots over deflate-gate, which now heads into it's third month without a resolution as the league continues their ridiculous investigation. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo was on hand at the event, which was held in Dallas at the Cowboys' stadium. Co-host Luke Bryant asked Romo to throw him a football, but before he did co-host Blake Shelton asked Romo if the ball was "one of those deflated balls?" Romo responded, "Blake, we're the Dallas Cowboys, we have real balls!" The Patriots will actually visit Dallas this season, so file this one away.
- The Patriots are continuing to look at prospects heading into the upcoming NFL Draft, with CSNNE.com reporting that Georgia running back Todd Gurley will visit the team this week. So far all indications seem to point to Gurley slipping into the end of the first round and with the Patriots holding the 32nd overall pick it's possible Gurley might still be available when they make their selection. There's obviously a need given the loss of Stevan Ridley via free agency, as well as Shane Vereen signing in New York with the Giants, leaving just LeGarrette Blount as the lead back. From there the team has Jonas Gray, who had one big outing before dropping completely off the radar, along with James White, Brandon Bolden and Tyler Gaffney as the other notable options.
- Karen Guregian pointed out recently that the team has some interesting decisions to make before they head into the Draft, with a couple of key ones involving a couple of important defensive players who the Patriots may want to try and extend before next season. Guregian noted that fifth-year contract options are approaching for both Chandler Jones and Dont'a Hightower, which should be a priority for the team to be proactive in getting extensions worked out for both. Hightower has obviously been terrific and has been a tremendous addition to the linebacker group, while Jones has also shown a lot of promise but has been hampered with injuries. Either way both players bring a lot to the defense, and hopefully the Patriots are able to get something done to make sure they stay here for the long-term.
- Mike Reiss noted in his Sunday column that second-year offensive tackle, Cameron Fleming, has devoted more time in his offseason training at the guard position. According to Reiss Fleming worked with Sparta Performance Science in California with a focus on working on his side-to-side skills, which are important at the guard spot. Versatility is always a good asset and it sounds like Fleming is focused on improving his value, which will hopefully provide New England with some additional depth up front.
- Right tackle Sebastian Vollmer has quite the year, with Vollmer having gotten married as well as winning his first Super Bowl championship. He told 98.5 the Sports Hub that it's been a great stretch, and now he's focused on helping the team defend their title. “I think you enjoy it for a few days afterwards, and try to re-live it, and it’s kind of a surreal feeling,” he told the radion station via Mike Reiss of ESPN Boston. “But then it’s really time to get back to work and you’re trying to catch up with the other teams and get back to business pretty quick. ... It was a great time and no one can take that away, but it's over now. We started the new year and it's only going to be harder. Everyone wants to be the champion, everyone wants to beat the champion, so it's going to be a tough road ahead."
