Training Camp Central: A.M. practice wrap
By Danny Picard
CSNNE.com
FOXBORO -- If there was ever a day to focus on special teams, it would be Tuesday. The Patriots took the field without pads during their first session, a day after putting on a late practice Monday night under the Gillette Stadium lights.
The Pats began Tuesday's early training camp session by walking through special teams assignments in sweatpants, shorts, and t-shirts.
And when you think of special teams, you think of kicking. When you think of kicking, you think of Stephen Gostkowski. You might not necessarily think of Zoltan Mesko, but perhaps you should. Because Mesko is the only punter on New England's roster.
The rookie out of Michigan is taking part in his first NFL training camp, and said on Tuesday that the difference between a college camp and an NFL camp is certainly noticeable.
"The NFL is a business, so you never know when your job is on the line," said Mesko. "I haven't made the team yet, and I'm just trying to improve day to day.
"In college, there's not much coaching. There's not a lot of special teams coordinators. Having someone tell you you've got to do this and this, it's really a good thing in the long run. Even though you might not like to check off the to-do list, in the end it's going to pay off."
Mesko feels as if he's improved, but believes he has a lot more mental work to take care of in order to get his "standards set" for the season.
"It's more of a mental game now," he said. "All the offseason conditioning tapers off during the season, and now it has to be focused on technique.
"Just like golfers, not always the strong guy wins the tournament."
Patriots special teams coach Scott O'Brien spoke to the media prior to Tuesday's morning walk through, and agreed that it's the mental aspect of Mesko's game that now has to be focused on before the season begins, such as, ball placement and the assignments of other players on the field.
"Any punter that's consistent in the National Football League, or really anywhere, has to have a consistent grip on the ball so it drops consistently for him," said O'Brien. "All those little things. But now, a lot more mental information, he has to take."
Gostkowski is entering his fifth season in the NFL, and as the Patriots kicker, he knows a thing or two about the mindset of being a pro in the kicking game. He's given Mesko plenty of advice so far in training camp. The best advice he gave had to do with a story from his own rookie year.
The moral of the story? Don't get too high and don't get too low.
"I told him a story about my rookie year, I went out and kicked a 48-yard field goal against the Colts," said Gostkowski. "I was so pumped, so happy. We kicked off, we made them fumble, and I was just so jacked up that three plays later I missed like a 35-yard field goal. It just shows you how quick you can go from hitting a long field goal against one of the best teams in the NFL to messing up on a chip-shot field goal."
Mesko has taken that mentality with him not only in the punting game, but also in the kicking game, as he's been holding Gostkowski's kicks during training camp.
"There's definitely a trust that needs to be built between the holder and the kicker, so I take great pride in playing a position that's really not noticed until you mess up," said Mesko. "Like punting, it has to be perfected, and I still have things to improve on, and I'm looking forward to that process. I definitely have made some strides in that category though."
Gostkowski talked about his conversion rates so far in training camp, and he said he was either 26-of-29 or 26-of-30. Either way, it comes out to an 87-88 percent conversion rating.
"I would take that during the season," said Gostkowski. "I looked at the kicks I missed. The good thing is, the ones I missed are by a hair, and that means I'm close. You'd rather be missing close than be shanking the ball all over the place. The good thing is, the times that I did miss, I came back and made the next one. You can take that as a positive. You're always upset when you don't do your job right every time. But like I said, you've got to manage your expectations. I didn't expect to come out the first week of camp and be in mid-season form."
Sam Aiken said he was surprised to have been elected special-teams captain last year, and if you could have heard Tuesday's interview with him, you'd understand why.
"Due to the fact that I'm not very vocal," said Aiken in one of his many short-and-to-the-point answers to the media. "I don't say too much. I try to lead by example."
Aiken will be New England's special-teams captain for the second straight season in 2010. He said that speed and technique were the keys to a solid special teams unit. But when asked what the Patriots' special teams needed to improve upon for this season, Aiken responded by saying, "Being number one never hurt."
To give a sense as to how quiet Tuesday morning's training camp session was, center Dan Koppen was asked if the team did anything good for Tom Brady on his birthday, which was Tuesday.
"Not yet," said Koppen. "But it's not over."
Koppen also talked about the adjustments the team has had to make at the offensive line this summer.
"That's what camp's for," he said. "You're rotating guys in, and you've got to get comfortable with different guys and give different guys reps. So that's what it's for.
"Last year's last year. We're moving on and we're talking about this year, and so far everybody's working hard, and we're just trying to get better from this point."
Danny Picard is on Twitter at http://twitter.com/DannyPicard
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