There was no talk of PSI pressure.

Nothing was mentioned about the Wells Report.

And Roger Goodell’s name never came up.

It was all about football for the first time in what seems like a long time Wednesday in Foxborough where Patriots owner Robert Kraft and president Jonathan Kraft were on hand to present first round draft pick Malcom Brown with his No. 1 jersey on the field at Gillette Stadium.

“I think back that this is a tradition we’ve been doing for 21 years,’’ Robert Kraft said before introducing the rookie defensive lineman out of Texas drafted No. 32 overall. “This is our privilege of introducing to you all our 22nd first rounder. I think back 21 years ago with Willie McGinest, we had the privilege yesterday of announcing that he’ll be inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame. It got me thinking, I hope I’m around 21 years from now and have the same privilege of introducing you to Malcom [Brown]. We like the name Malcom.


“We’ve had a pretty good history with that name over the recent past. And the name Brown has been pretty good, too – one of our best long-term players. We were thinking of D-linemen who have come here married with children and that’s been a pretty good history as well with Ty Warren and Vince Wilfork, so we hope Malcom continues in this tradition.’’

The 6-foot-2, 319-pound Brown spoke about being a Patriot and participating in OTAs with his new teammates this week.

And for Brown, it’s all about the work, as he referenced a form of the word “work’’ 38 times in his Q&A with the media.

“Just right away from the get-go you see the hard work and you see everything just thrown at you, so you’ve got to grasp it and go,’’ Brown said. “I’ve just got to focus and get ready to go to work.

“Coming into this process you hear a lot from guys who come back from college and guys that you talk to. Everybody said you’re going to have to compete and you’re going to have to work, and so far everybody was right. You have to come here, you have to work hard, you have to compete every day. You have to pack your lunch and come to work.’’


As far as his new head coach goes, Brown says Bill Belichick has shown him nothing but love.

“Great guy. He’s my new coach now and he shows everybody a lot of love – tough love – and sometimes you need that,’’ Brown said.

The first-team All-Big 12 selection and first-team All-American is experiencing first-hand the well-known workmanlike environment in Foxborough created by his teammates, who are more than willing to get the rookie up to speed.

“Everybody is taking me under their wing and everybody just wants you to work hard,’’ Brown said. “Really you don’t have a choice but to work hard because everybody’s going to compete… Everybody wants you to work hard and help the team win games. As long as you’ve got that mindset, everybody’s happy with you.

“Everything is fast, but everybody helps and contributes to helping you learn and get on track with the vets.’’

When Brown was drafted a month ago, he boldly proclaimed that he wanted to be one of the best draft picks in Patriots history. He was asked today if Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had anything to say about that statement.

“No. I actually just walked up to Tom and shook his hand and we just went to work,’’ Brown said. “Everybody’s trying to work right now. It’s a learning experience. It’s easy to learn right now because you’re doing everything stage by stage. Everybody is trying to focus and work towards getting better next year.


“Everything is just on the fly here. Everything is on the go. You’ve got to learn, but you’ve got to take time out of your day to learn the stuff, too. You can’t expect to get it all in during meetings. You’ve got to be able to manage your time and learn everything.’’

One thing Brown hasn’t spent any time getting up to speed on is the Patriots you-know-what controversy that has dominated the media for months.

“I haven’t really been focusing towards that,’’ Brown said. “Like I said, I’m just here to work. That’s all I’ve been focusing on is getting better every day and learning the material and getting better and working hard.’’

Brown is also not star-struck by suddenly being surrounded by Super Bowl champions.

“I can’t be a good teammate if I’m focused on all that stuff, this and that,’’ Brown said. “I just go to work. I just use their work ethic to help mine and adapt to theirs because they work hard every day and go to work.

“They’re just like us. They come here to work every day and they want us to have the right mindset going into next year. Nobody is really talking about last year; they’re talking about the now and the future. They want to work hard, going forward and getting better next year.’’

Brown’s hard work paid off in Texas, where the defensive lineman racked up 165 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, six pass deflections, and two forced fumbles over his three seasons in Austin.

Another Patriots nose tackle who focosed on working hard – Vince Wilfork – isn’t around any longer and it’s natural for fans to view Brown as Wilfork’s replacement.

“I haven’t really thought about replacing anyone,’’ Brown said. “I’m just here to work. I can’t stress that enough, just compete every day and work because nothing is given to you.’’

File under: Working man

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