Copyright NBC10 Boston
In terms of Patriots dynasty lore, the phrase "choosing to be introduced as a team" is as ingrained in the culture nearly as much as "it is what it is" and "do your job." The team introduction for Super Bowl XXXVI, juxtaposed with the individual introductions of the high-flying Rams, served as the perfect picture of how that team pulled off the upset victory. Alas, nearly a quarter of a century later, a new day has dawned in New England. The Patriots' offensive starters were introduced individually before Sunday's win over the Cleveland Browns, the first time that's happened at Gillette Stadium. Defensive captain and first-year Patriot Robert Spillane was a guest on The Quick Snap podcast with Brian Hoyer and David Andrews, and he was asked where the idea of the introductions came from, and he said it was the idea of head coach Mike Vrabel. "Vrabel asked the guys if they wanted to be recognized individually coming out of the locker room, and our leadership group decided that that's something that we were interested in doing," Spillane said. Vrabel shared his thought process after Sunday's 32-13 win. "I just felt like these guys put a lot into it and we would like to recognize them individually," Vrabel said. "Hopefully our fans can embrace that and get excited for them. It was something we felt like we wanted to do, create some energy early and get them to recognize the player's efforts and allow these fans to support us, which they did." While Spillane is new to New England, he spoke on the significance of honoring the past while establishing a new identity. "Yeah, it's a new era. It's a brand new team. New guys, new traditions," Spillane said. "Yes, we're going to honor the traditions that were here in terms of playing our hearts out, playing with effort and finish on a daily basis, being good teammates, making great decisions. But at the end of the day, this is a new era of Patriot football." Spillane details Vrabel's energy Spillane, who leads the team by a wide margin with 67 tackles, plays every snap with high energy. He said he's helped in maintaining that level by his head coach. "That is everything to us. I'm telling you, those first 15 to 30 minutes of the day when Coach walks in the team meeting room to set the energy and the tempo for the day, that is so big to me as a player," Spillane said. "And that's what you look for. You look for that consistency in a coach. Somebody who's gonna bring energy and passion every day that he walks in this building. You know what to expect from Coach. He's gonna have high expectations from his best players, he's gonna hold you to the highest standard. But that's what you want as a player, and I'm proud to play for Coach, and I know all of our guys are." Spillane says even the defense plays harder for Drake Maye Second-year quarterback Drake Maye has been a legitimate MVP candidate this year, as he has the entire offense buzzing. As Spillane explained, though, even the defense gets motivated when a quarterback is playing like Maye. "When you have a young, elite quarterback who's a game changer, who can do it all, it puts more pressure on you as a player. You want that as a player," Spillane shared. "You want to go out there and say we gotta perform, because we have this great young player who is going to make plays on the offensive side of the ball. Just get him the ball, and they are gonna do great things." Spillane added: "Ever since OTAs, I've been just overly impressed by how he not only leads his offensive players but leads this team as a whole. He has relationships with every guy in that locker room. So just to have that leadership at such a young age and energy and passion, and he just comes in here to work every day. We know that he's our quarterback and he's gonna take us as far as we can go. So we as a defense have gotta be great for him."
