May 13, 2006
Sights & sounds
Sights and sounds from the Patriots’ locker room at rookie minicamp:
* Kicker Steve Gostkowski, wearing jersey No. 3, has occupied Doug Flutie’s old locker. He’s next to fellow kicker Martin Gramatica (No. 7). Gostkowski drew a large media crowd and, quickly adapting to his surroundings, said his favorite baseball team is the Red Sox.
* Laurence Maroney on his first impressions of New England: “It’s like Minnesota. Cold. Nasty. I’m used to it.â€
* Veterans Dan Koppen and Lonie Paxton were present in the locker room after participating in the team’s offseason program. When Paxton walked by rookie Dan Stevenson, who was conducting an interview, he told him that sometimes it's best not to say too much. Stevenson then joked that the interview was over. Such is the life of a rookie.
* Maroney on picking No. 39: “They gave me a list of numbers. I knew number 22 was gone [to Asante Samuel] and my next choice was number [Ellis Hobbs’] 27. It’s a new number for me, but like I said, the number doesn’t make me, you make the number.â€
* Veteran linebacker Barry Gardner will wear No. 98, while fellow veteran linebacker Jeremy Loyd has No. 96.
The team's practice at 3 p.m. ET is open to the media. We'll have more a bit later in the day.
