The team addresses logistics before turning its full attention to the Philadelphia Eagles and Super Bowl LII.
FOXBORO – There’s work to be done here – plenty of it, in fact, between now and Feb. 4.
When asked on Monday how much he knows about the Eagles, Patriots defensive lineman Ricky Jean Francois answered: “The Eagles are a bird. That’s about it right now. On Wednesday, I can probably tell you much more.”
Monday, as center David Andrews explained, was a day when players had “some logistics to get done and then everyone’s getting ready to go.
“I think the importance of this game, everyone’s well aware of that,” said Andrews, a member of last year’s Super Bowl championship team, “and I think the good leadership we have on this team (will stress to) some of the young guys how important this week is here, staying in your routine as best as you can here and really hammering down this week and getting to know the Eagles.”
Seeking their sixth Super Bowl championship, their second straight and third in the last four years, the AFC champion Patriots will meet the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis two Sundays from now.
After taking a day off on Tuesday, the team will hit the practice field on Wednesday. Monday was a day for film review of Sunday’s 24-20 AFC Championship Game win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at Gillette Stadium, meetings and to begin addressing those logistics.
“Get all the hotels, the tickets and all that (for family members and friends) squared away now so when it comes Wednesday of this week or any other day we can actually start paying attention to Philadelphia and Philadelphia only,” said Jean Francois, a member of the San Francisco 49ers team that lost Super Bowl XLVII to Baltimore, 34-31. “I ain’t got to hear phone calls from somebody (saying), ‘Hey, Rick, I want to go to the game. I want to do this.’ I ain’t got time for that. Once Wednesday comes, I don’t want to hear (anything) about a ticket, a hotel, flight, anything.”
For cornerback Eric Rowe, the request line’s already been open.
“Man, it’s just a lot of people just hit me up (saying), ‘Oh, can I go to the game?’” said Rowe. “I’m like, ‘It ain’t cheap. It’s not cheap on my end. It’s not going to be cheap on your end.’ I’ve gotten a lot of requests, but it’s just something you’ve got to deal with.”
Deal with it now, special teamer Matthew Slater said, or it can become a problem later.
“It can become a distraction if you let it linger,” Slater, who is preparing for his fourth Super Bowl, said. “Obviously, there are a lot of people that have stood behind us as players that we want to have be a part of this experience with us, but at the same time we’re only going down there for one reason and this is work for us. So I think the quicker you can get that behind you and figure it out, the better for everyone.”
Once that’s done, Andrews said, the priority turns to “staying in your routine as best as you can this week and really hammering down this week and getting to know the Eagles.”
“It’s not like we’re looking ahead to other potential opponents,” said Slater. “There’s only one team that we’re looking to play so all of our energy’s going to be put toward them.”
According to Rowe, this isn’t a typical bye week.
“Typical bye week during the season, you know who you’re playing, but you rest up,” said Rowe, a member of last year’s championship team. “This is the Super Bowl. We’ll rest up, but we’re obviously going to prepare at the same time really hard because it’s going to be the hardest challenge that we’re going to have.”
“This is a big week,” Andrews agreed. “It’s not a regular bye week. It’s a week where we need to get a lot of preparation done and prepare like we’re going to play on Sunday. So I think that’s going to be a big thing to stress to some of the younger guys or guys who haven’t been in this position.”
“I know there’s going to be a lot of hoopla and whatnot,” said Slater, “but our focus needs to be on the game, our preparation, and going down there and playing our best game of the season.”