The guys talk about what to do (and what not to do) during summer break, discuss Drake Maye's leadership skills, play over/under with Stefon Diggs' stats for 2025, and more
1:25: Last week, Mike Vrabel talked about the message he wanted to deliver to the players before they left for the break. What was the prime directive Hogan and the rest of the team got from Bill Belichick before they left for the summer? “Don’t be an assh*le.”
4:30: How do you as a player get away from the game, but also want to try and stay sharp? Are you running on a beach somewhere at 6 a.m. at a resort? “I remember taking my wife to Turks & Caicos and we were doing hill sprints at 7 o’clock in the morning.”
7:15: We asked Vrabel what he was going to do over the next four weeks or so, and he talked about time with family. He also said you sort of got cranky over the last 10 days or so, because you were just ready for things to start. What did you do during your time away, and did you get squirrelly at all in those last 10 days or so before the start of camp? “Yeah, you get anxious,” said Hogan.
10:00: Training camp is all football, but there’s also anxiety and excitement and anticipation. “I’ll see you at Thanksgiving.” What is the best thing and worst thing about this time of year for a player?
16:00: Price is working on a story on John “Stretch” Streicher, Vrabel’s No. 2 guy who has been described by some as the new Ernie Adams. With this in mind, what is Hogan’s favorite Ernie Adams story? “Ernie was always a damn mystery to me. For the first year and a half, I didn’t know who the guy was. … He was a really interesting individual.”
21:15: Ernie was a one-man analytics department in Foxborough.
21:40: On Drake as a leader. Does he have the capability to take that step from rookie quarterback to captain/leader? “He can’t be afraid to be an assh*le.”
27:10: On Maye leading the spring workouts. He would call out a cadence and if the team jumped, they’d run again. He had the reins. “I think that’s a good sign. …. For this team to be successful, [Maye] needs to continue to mature into a genuine leader.”
30:25: On Brady telling Gronk he wouldn’t throw him the ball if he kept making mistakes. “I don’t care how good you are.” Brady was “so detail-oriented.” On building trust with pass catchers.
35:12: Over/under on Stefon Diggs. We take 70 catches, 950 yards, and five touchdowns. Over or under on all three?
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40:26
The guys talk Stefon Diggs, Tom Brady, take some listener questions, and much more
1:00: Early thoughts on how Stefon Diggs looked at OTAs, “I’ve already forgotten about the beat video. … I thought he looked great.”
4:00: Now that you have this mix of wide receivers “this time of year, it’s just so crucial for these young kids to take this next step. … Seems like [Diggs] made the right decision.”
6:00: “I’ve seen guys come back from ACL injuries, and it doesn’t look like that, six or seven months post-surgery. He is obviously taking his rehab seriously.”
7:15: “If [Diggs] continues to practice the way we saw him practice the other day, it’s not going to be an issue. … It’s all on him right now.”
10:45: Bill Belichick: “If you’re not good at one thing, you better be damn good at 10 things.”
11:30: Hogan on punting during practice in hopes of doing whatever he could to make the team. “You have to grind. … This is the NFL.”
12;55: On Brady’s punting. “His little surprise pooch kicks on third down? … I’m sure he was real good at that.”
13:25: Hogan: “To this day, I feel like I could have lasted in this league as a punter. … I was a backup punter in college.”
14:35: On Hogan saying he’d take a shot at the NFL again as a punter.
17:00: Hogan says Thomas Morstead was a great punter. One of the toughest he faced. Also gives a shout-out to Ryan Allen.
20:00: Listener question: “How concerned should the Pats brass be about Stefon Diggs’ antics?”
22:40: Welker rehab vs. Diggs rehab. Two guys coming back quick from ACL issues.
23:40: Listener question: “Can you explain the offense that Josh McDaniels is instituting in a way the average fan can understand it? And do you think it fits with Drake Maye’s skill set?”
30:20: How Hogan helped Price ask a good question during a press conference.
31:00: Listener question: “We’ve heard from the rookies about players they looked up to when they were playing. Was there a guy like that for you, either as a young athlete or someone when you came into the league, who was like that for you?”
31:30: On Fred Jackson’s leadership and guidance when Hogan was ion Buffalo. “He was a pro’s pro.”
32:45: “Tom [Brady] was one of those guys too.”
34:25: Davone Bess was also helpful. “Davone … he would always answer my questions.”
35:25: Why you want to be the veteran who invites other guys over for dinner on Thanksgiving.
38:00: On being a TB12 workout and nutrition guy and how it occasionally caused a rift with the franchise.
41:40: On connecting with lacrosse legend Paul Rabil and reconnecting with old coach Bill Belichick on a new project.
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43:56
The guys talk to ESPN's Field Yates about the state of the roster, the Stefon Diggs' boat video, and much more
00:45: Comparing the spending spree of the 2020 offseason with the one the Patriots had this past offseason.
1:13: On the Patriots: “It feels like the blue-chip capital has increased dramatically this offseason. It comes in various shapes and sizes.”
2:15: Field is playing into the cautious optimism we’ve displayed so far.
3:05: Yates: “There are reasons to be excited and optimistic” about the 2025 Patriots.
4:11: Why the Dolphins are in a scary spot right now when compared to the Patriots.”Not good enough to make a legitimate playoff push. … A team that is in a weird transition. … A very unique space.”
5:15: Field’s thoughts on the Will Campbell arm-length debate “Will Campbell, to me, was one of the cleanest players in this past draft class.”
9:05: If Campbell doesn’t do well at tackle for some reason, what sort of guard could he be?
10:54: Field on Diggs’ boat video: “Every decision you make, on and off the field, impacts the football team. … Twenty-three million dollars a year; there’s a level of responsibility that comes with that.”
14:30: On how this year will be a learning curve for the offensive coaching staff because Josh doesn’t have a lot of the same guys (Chad O’Shea, Ivan Fears) that he worked with previously in New England.
17:20: Other than Will Campbell, which one of the rookies has the best chance of making an impact on the 2025 roster?
20:25: Is there a guy on the roster we’re not talking about more who has a chance to make an impact this coming season?
23:00: Chris and Chris talk about the Diggs’ boat video. It’s a horrible decision by Diggs, but if he can ball out in the opener against the Raiders, this will be a footnote.
34:01: It probably wasn’t a coincidence that after it broke, there were 10 Instagram reels showing Diggs working during his rehab.
34:54: Was there ever a situation like this with Bill? “Bill had such a stranglehold on everyone in that building. Everyone was so self-conscious and so self-aware of what they were posting.”
36:10: There were a couple of guys who took advantage of the fact that Diggs wasn’t there on Wednesday, including UDFA Efton Chism and Javon Baker. “For those two guys, it’s all about stringing them together.”
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38:45
*BONUS EPISODE* Bill Belichick joins the Pro Football Doc Podcast
8x Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick joined the Pro Football Doc Podcast to talk about his new book The Art of Winning: Lessons from a Life in Football, why injuries are so important, the value Pro Football Doc and SIC Provide to the NFL fans and some great stories during their time in the NFL together.
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21:22
Chris Price breaks down the Patriots' 2025 schedule
The 2025 regular season schedule dropped Wednesday night, and Chris Price has plenty of thoughts on how it all shapes up from a New England perspective. Where are the winnable games? The revenge contests? The toughest stretch? And how does it stack up to last year?
Two-time Super Bowl champion Chris Hogan and award-winning journalist and author Christopher Price of The Boston Globe discuss New England football every week on “The Patriots Report.” Hogan, a veteran of nine seasons in the NFL, joins Price to talk about Mike Vrabel, Drake Maye, and the rest of the roster.
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