Up next, the Saints and Patriots will practice with each other again tomorrow before both travel to New Orleans on Friday and play Saturday night in the Mercedes Benz Superdome.
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The two teams will practice on Wednesday and Thursday of this week in anticipation of Saturday night’s game, with Payton pointing out that he’s taken some tips on how Belichick runs practices, and he’s always had great communication with him. He also spent six minutes with the media and said he regularly speaks with Brady, but they no longer bring up Deflategate.
I have all the respect in the world for the Saints, their entire organization, Sean, the way they do things, Belichick said. I think I reached out to coach a couple months back, and just told him I was in the area and it would be nice. It would get the kid thinking. “Friends are supposed to stay positive and move you in the right direction and that’s what I’m there for”.
As for Brady on the field? The lanky pairing of receivers in New England have both shown the ability to stretch the field, but after missing week one of the preseason both players have to prove that they can consistently contribute.
“He wanted me to”, Moss said. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) tosses a pass over New Orleans Saints safety Vinnie Sunseri, right, during a joint practice between the Patriots and New Orleans Saints at the Saint’s NFL football training camp in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., Thursday, August 20, 2015.
The league announced in May that it was suspending Brady over allegations he conspired with two Patriots equipment employees to deflate footballs below what league rules allow, to give him a competitive edge in New England’s victory over the Indianapolis Colts in January’s AFC championship game. And anytime the game slows down for you, that’s unsafe because it means he’s able to think a little bit slower to be able to make decisions for the offense.
The Morgans looked good for the Saints. Then, Moss had a one-on-one moment with Rob Gronkowski during special teams drills. “That’s something I can remember specifically coach Belichick preaching”.
For me, it would be wasted energy, Payton said. Tom is a legend. “We kind of root for the Saints”. But my legend growing up was Jerry West. That was my first time ever meeting Jerry West. It was definitely an honor.
“I don’t call him to talk about anything negative. We did not gash the Patriots but I thought the Saints did run the ball effectively”. He represents the same state that I represent.
Saints players were approaching bubbly after the workout, ecstatic with the amount of productive work that was registered – sans fisticuffs – at The Greenbrier. “Now I finally got to meet somewhat of my childhood hero, so it was a special day for me”.
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What he’s doing now with his career: “I just opened the Randy Moss Academy in Charlotte”.
