September 13, 2020 | 5:37 PM
Asked to describe the atmosphere inside an empty Gillette Stadium in the 2020 Patriots season opener, Bill Belichick needed only one word.
“Practice,” said the Patriots’ coach following his team’s 21-11 win over the Dolphins on Sunday.
Pressed for more, he compared it to joint practices, normally a Patriots training camp staple, which — like so many other things in 2020 — were put on hold this year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s like scrimmaging the Titans, or scrimmaging Detroit, or scrimmaging the teams that we scrimmage,” said Belichick. “I mean there were a few fans there, but basically there are no fans there and it’s just competition. There’s some energy from your teammates and your own energy. It is what is. That’s what it’s like out there in practice, there are no fans either.”
As far as the events on the field, Belichick was pleased with the team’s energy level after a preseason that included no games.
“I thought the players were in good condition,” Belichick explained. “I thought conditioning was a big factor for us, so that’s a credit to their hard work, and we stepped up and made some big plays when we needed to throughout the game.”
The most obvious difference between this season’s Patriots and every previous version dating back two decades was that Tom Brady didn’t open as the quarterback. With Brady gone in free agency, and Cam Newton in, it was up to the 31-year-old former MVP to get things underway.
Newton finished his New England debut 15-19 for 155 yards passing, along with 15 carries for 75 yards on the ground. His two rushing touchdowns helped get the Patriots to a winning start.
“Cam’s been great for us,” said Belichick. Though there were questions about whether the two could work together, Newton’s new coach reiterated that the quarterback continues to win respect through his work rate.
“He’s a very, very unselfish player,” Belichick added. “He’s a great teammate. He’s earned everybody’s respect really daily. He just continues to do everything that he can to help our team, and that’s really all you can ask from anyone, and he continually does that. Puts himself last and puts the team first, so I think he done a tremendous job there and I thought he played well today.”
As ever, Belichick refused to get carried away.
“I mean look, there’s room for improvement from all of us, so I’m not saying it was the best executed game in the history of football, but we did some good things in all three phases the game,” Belichick noted. “We’re proud of that, and we’ll go back to work on the things that we need to do better, but I thought he did a good job for us.”
One player who received a shoutout for performing especially well was cornerback J.C. Jackson.
With the Dolphins driving for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, Jackson’s interception ended Miami’s final threat of the day.
“I’ll just say I really take my hat off to J.C.,” Belichick offered. “I thought J.C. really competed well today. He showed a lot of mental toughness, and a real competitiveness in the game.”
During the game, Belichick wore a commemorative patch honoring Hall of Fame player and coach Fritz Pollard.
Afterward, he began his postgame press conference by mentioning Pollard.
“I’ll start with just how honored I am to have worn the patch today for Fritz Pollard,” said Belichick. “The criteria they talked about was somebody who had overcome discrimination and racism and certainly Fritz Pollard fits into that category.”
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