Wes Welker on Tom Brady: ‘It’s good to see he’s human’
FOXBOROUGH — With another large crowd watching the Patriots practice on the fields just outside Gillette Stadium, quarterback Tom Brady was, as always, the center of attention. So it was particularly glaring when Brady dropped back, read the defense, and threw a clean pick to safety Steve Gregory. Fans gasped, then cheered, as the defense celebrated the play with chest bumps. Brady was hopping mad, clapping his hands together and angrily ripping off his chin strap as he walked off the field.
The defense won the day Wednesday at Patriots camp, and in some ways, there’s nothing wrong with that.
“He was pretty fired up,” said Patriots wide receiver Welker, asked about Brady’s interception. “He’s his own biggest critic. As much as coach even stays on him and everyone else, he’s his own worst enemy sometimes. It’s great to see. He cares. He wants to do great, and he is great.”
Brady was fine during much of practice, hitting his intended targets, most notably Jabar Gaffney (who left practice early) and Donte Stallworth. But he did throw a couple of balls long, and it was clear he wasn’t happy about it.
“It’s good to see he’s human sometimes,” said Welker. “Everybody has bad plays out there. It’s how you bounce back from them, how you go out there and compete and keep fighting and how you get after it out there. He’s always understanding that and knowing if he makes a bad play he’s going to come back ten times better the next time. It really rubs off on all the other guys out there.”
Brady has been trying to get on the same page with his new receivers, but even with familiar faces like Welker, there’s a readjustment.
“I think it’s something you constantly work on,” said Welker. “You try and get on the same page, understand. I try to win all my routes and know that he’s going to put the ball where he needs to put it. It’s an ongoing deal to get that chemistry.”
One player Welker thinks is getting along just fine with Brady is fellow wide receiver Brandon Lloyd, who was not on the practice field today.
“He makes some of the crazier catches you see in the NFL, and he does it on a daily basis,” said Welker. “Having that is a great element for us, having that option out there to make some great plays.
“He’s a rare type of athlete. He does such a great job of making plays. Hopefully he’ll help us out a lot this season.”
— Like Bill Belichick earlier in the day, Welker said last night’s scuffle during a scrimmage was no big deal.
“It’s one of those things that happens I think in every camp,” said Welker. “It’s not that big a deal, you just kind of move on from it. There’s no animosity between anybody. It almost makes it fun at times.”
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