APMike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com speculated last week that free agent Kevin Faulk would get another chance to make the Patriots’ roster, assuming Faulk had plans to keep playing at age 35. And Faulk does.
“That word [retirement] is not in my vocabulary right now,” Faulk told the Boston Herald on Sunday. “If it’s possible, if [the Patriots] allow me to, I’d like to play another season.”
Faulk tore the ACL in his right knee on September 20 of last season, doesn’t have a contract for 2011, and would enter a Patriots running back depth chart that is deeper than ever. They used second- and third-round picks on Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley, and BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead are both expected back.
“People are telling me they drafted two running backs, but hey, I’ve never questioned anything the Patriots have done,” said Faulk. “That’s why they’re who they are.”
Faulk also says his ACL rehab is going smoothly.
“Right now, I’m doing everything,” he said. “Right now, I can’t complain. We’ll just see what happens when that time comes.”
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I hate the Patriots, but you cannot help but love Kevin Faulk.
Kevin, don’t retire – just change position… to coach.
You’ve been an awesome Patriot (some would argue that you deserve a statue), but at 35 coming off an ACL tear this could be really bad.
Boy it’s really gonna suck if no football this year. I mean with scintillating stories like this to look forward to.
“I’ve never questioned anything the Patriots have done” Kevin is a true patriot all around!
Kevin Faulk is pulling a Brett Favre on us
He’ll end up with the Redskins for a year or two and then sign a one-day contract with the Pats and retire.
Faulk will be with the Patriots next year. This guy is worth the risk with his locker room presence alone.
At least request a trade then, BJGE and Woodhead are both better than him, he’s getting old, and he’s coming off a serious injury.
I hate the Patriots, but you cannot help but love Kevin Faulk.
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Why do people say crap like this? The Patriots are full of Kevin Faulk’s, which is why they have been so successful over the past decade. So why would you hate? Its sad that sports fans today can’t respect a successful organization, but have to trash them. They aren’t the Miami Heat who go out and buy three all stars. Or the Yankees who have a payroll 30 million dollars higher than any other team. I don’t get it. And don’t give me Spygate. People were trashing the Patriots even before that.
Christ! If I were to put every Patriot, on a roster that Patriot haters love, would you still hate the Patriots wouldn’t you?
@macker1283
The guy complimented a Patriot player and instead of appreciating that someone respected a player on your team, you say what he says is crap because he doesn’t praise your favorite organization. It is easy to hate the Patriots. Belicheck is the smuggest coach in the game and has been accused of running up the scores on teams. I think Chargers fans found it easy to hate the Pariots for mocking LT in the playoffs. I think it was very easy to hate the Patriots when one of the dirtiest players in the league, Rodney Harrison, played for them. Spygate was actually a big deal. The Patriots cheated. If you cheat, you don’t deserve respect. So if anybody hated them before, it was way easier to hate them after Spygate.
Kevin Faulk is my favorite professional athlete of all time, in any sport, any era. He loves the game, he appreciates how great the opportunity is to make millions playing a game, he appreciates all of the good things that the organization brings to his life and his family. I’m sure if he was drafted to any other team it would be the same. Kevin would be loyal, he would give everthing to contribute to the success of the group. Like Tedy Bruschi, he will definitely not be getting traded or looking to his the free agent market. Kevin Faulk is what pro sports should be about- showcasing hard work on top of talent, teamwork and loyalty on top of showmanship. Captain Kevin.
@ prmatincek
Spygate is only a “big deal” to fans who hate the Patriots. If people like you bothered to research the culture of the league throughout its history, you’d find that this was mice nuts. Also, if you bothered to do your research, you’d know that the league–meaning the league offices–made it a point to remind the teams for years to stop the videotaping a la Spygate. This resulted in little cooperation from teams and zero penalty from the league (the boy who cried wolf syndrome). (If your Mom told you to stop doing something or else you’d be punished, yet you kept doing it without a punishment, wouldn’t you keep doing it?). Part of these warnings, you’ll tell me, was a memo from league attorney Ray Anderson. Again, if you did your research, you’d know that the memo changed the wording of the videotaping rule thereby changing the rule itself, which he nor Goodell has the power to do. That memo SHOULD have been ignored since it quoted a rule that did NOT exist. Semantics, yes. But, still.
On top of that, you’ll notice that coaches and players in the league tiptoed around the issue when it was happening because they knew the deal. A lot of retired, successful coaches such as Jimmy Johnson and Bill Cowher have said that Spygate was nothing, mainly because these guys themselves did the same thing. Tony Dungy employed this method when he became HC of TB because the guy who taught Jimmy Johnson, a KC scout at the time when Dungy, Cowher and Herm Edwards were on the KC coaching staff, moved to TB with Dungy. Dungy said he didn’t get much from these tapes and stopped using them.
You’ll tell me about the punishment. Why was it so harsh? Really, it wasn’t. Yes, $500K to Belichick was the 1st time the maximum fine was levied to an individual, but the $750k total fine is NOT EVEN CLOSE to the fines given to the Broncos for violating the cap TWICE ($950K+ each time) or the 49ers cap violation (in excess of $1 million including fines to the agents of the players involved).
You’ll tell me about the 1st round draft pick. Well, on the surface, that does looks harsh. But, again, delve into the facts. They had TWO 1st round picks in 2008 (one they acquired from SF and their own). The SF was a top 10 pick. Their own was # 31, which everyone knows they would have traded down. So, the NFL really took away a possible 2nd round pick and MAYBE a future 1st or 2nd. Since we don’t really know what would have become of that # 31 pick, the worst we can say is that the NFL saved the Pats from paying 1st round money to two guys. (the Pats recovered nicely by having two firsts, two seconds, and two thirds in this past draft) Also, the NFL said that if the Pats made the playoffs in 2007 (they did), the draft pick penalty would be worse than if they missed the playoffs (it would have been a 2nd round pick). So, let me get this straight. If they made the playoffs without the so called benefit from the cameras, the punishment would have been worse than if they missed the playoffs, which would have proved that the cameras helped. Sorry, but that makes zero sense.
As far as the Chargers incident, you neglect to mention that before that game, the Chargers were crowning themselves king forgetting the fact that Tom Brady and the Patriots were coming to town. I think they should have worried about the 3x SB champs coming in instead of proclaiming themselves champ. On top of that, Shawn Merriman did absolutely NOTHING in that game. The Pats did their talking AFTER the game. The Chargers did it BEFORE that game. The Pats were not taunting or dancing before or during the game like the other team was. Sorry, but the only asses in that game were the Chargers. And, SD’s conduct in the locker room was despicable.
Running up the score? What is this pop warner football? Joe Gibbs took a brutal beating (52-7) and said that Belichick did NOT run up the score. He said that there’s no such thing in the NFL. FANS accuse Belichick of this because of their hatred for him, but the league does not see it that way. Plus after being accused of cheating by synchophants like the NY media, did you think Belichick was gonna cower in the corner? B.S.! He was gonna put the hammer down and prove he didn’t need no stinkin’ cameras. Why don’t you get that? But, running up the score? That’s for amateurs.
I can see your point about Harrison and Belichick’s smugness, but did people hate the Chargers when Harrison was on SD (other than the people in St Louis!)? Was Belichick beloved in Cleveland because of his charming personality and his willingness to divulge information to the press? I just don’t get these points.
People hate the Pats for the same reason people hate Duke, the Yankees, the Celtics, and the Montreal Canadiens. Their success. Period. All of these other reasons are simply excuses.
I thought Faulk was on AARP…
huh… Weird.
@bcgreg
Belicheck got busted filming other teams, Right?
No big deal to the patriot fans. Defend him to the death. Still got his job.
McDaniels got busted filming ONE (1), UNO, team at a throw away game.
Where is he? Fired, run out of town. Fans? Screamed for his head, hate him for embarrassing their team.
Difference:
Denver ownership and fandom have some pride, ethics, and moral standards.
Patriots ownership and fans…..nuff said
@ willycents
Calling into question my ethics and moral standards? You don’t know a thing about me, dude? Where do you come off?
You obviously didn’t read my post. I know it’s long, and it might be difficult to understand because of the blind hatred of the Patriots that you possess. But it answers the questions of the previous poster I was addressing. As I said, it’s the FANS, of which you are one, who make a big deal out of it. I was pointing out how the league and people involved with the league (NOT the media) don’t hold the same opininon in general.
And, Willy? Every team films and has film on every other team, right? I know, “Yeah, but…”
Denver fired their coach because he didn’t produce. Also, Denver was caught filming a PRACTICE of which Belichick was NEVER caught doing. Again, he was accused and exonerated of those accusations by Matt Walsh, the star witness for all you haters, who let you all down. THAT’s the difference between the Spygate and the Broncos situation. I bet you Broncos fans are proud of those back to back championships built illegally by violating the salary cap multiple times. Talk about cheating. Nice ethics and moral standards exhibited there, eh?
And, Mangini got fired twice because he didn’t produce. Mangini also got caught doing what Belichick got caught doing BEFORE Belichick got caught (2006 playoffs), but the media didn’t follow up on it. Why? Because he sucked and was fired anyway. THAT’S the difference. Not “integrity”. McDaniels and Mangini, neither of which were ready to be a HC of an NFL team IMO, did not PRODUCE. Pro sports is a results business. They didn’t produce.