FOXBORO, MASS. (WHDH) - Patriots players reported to training camp in Foxborough Wednesday as the team gears up for the upcoming season.
Head coach Bill Belichick addressed the media around 8:30 a.m. and made it clear that he isn’t interested in talking about the past.
“Right now, my focus is on the 2018 season, not 2017, not 2014, not 2007, not 2004, not 2001, not 2000, not focused on any of those seasons. They’re done,” he said.
Players say they are ready for the hard work to come as they head back to the practice field.
“It’s a grind but you gotta enjoy it,” linebacker Marquis Flowers said. “You gotta enjoy the good and the bad. You can’t just be saying things are fun just when things are going well. What we do in training camp is what’s gonna makes us have fun, that’s win games.”
Questions about some of New England’s star players are still up in the air, including wide receiver Julian Edelman, tight end Rob Gronkowski, and quarterback Tom Brady.
As for the reported rift within the team, former Patriots players Sebastian Vollmer and Rob Ninkovich say it’s much to do about nothing.
“I don’t think you need to be best buds,” Vollmer said. “I don’t think you need to be best buds with the guy next to you. You gotta have a great working relationship.”
Ninkovich reiterated this statement, saying, “Bill is the boss. You’re not supposed to be best friends with your boss. That’s just not the way it works.”
Captains of the 2017 season Matthew Slater, Devin McCourty and David Andrews are expected to address the media at noon.
Training camp is free and open to the public, with the first practice starting at 9:15 a.m. Thursday.
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