Pat Patriot
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- Mar 19, 2019
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The Patriots are going to look very different the next time they take the field because their quarterback won’t be Tom Brady, but another longtime member of the team doesn’t think that change will lead to a change in the outlook for the year to come.
Special teams ace Matthew Slater acknowledged that “it’s a tall task” to move forward without a player who has had an outsize role in shaping the identity of the team for 20 years. That shift in identity isn’t something he’ll use as an excuse for a shift in the way the team goes about its business, however.
“I don’t think the goals change at all,” Slater said, via Phil Perry of NBCSportsBoston.com. “I don’t think the standards change at all. . . . We’re not the victims here. You don’t have time to waste any season in the NFL.”
Slater has been a team leader for some time and he said he thinks the team should be fine on that front as they move forward without Brady, but there are still going to be a lot of questions to answer once the first post-Brady season gets up and running.