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Forget '07: Pats back for another Super Bowl run
A linebacker who was the 10th overall selection in this year's draft, Mayo signed a five-year deal, according to his agent, Mitch Frankel. The deal was wrapped up in the morning as his teammates embarked on their first practice and Mayo was present for the evening workout.
"It sounds like that's getting pretty close," coach Bill Belichick said a few hours before the announcement. "But until they're done, to me, they're not done."
For Belichick, nothing is done at this time of year.
Less than six months after the Patriots' bid for a perfect season — and a fourth Super Bowl title in eight years — was foiled with a 17-14 loss to the New York Giants, New England was back on the practice field.
"We're disappointed about the way it ended, no doubt about it," quarterback Tom Brady said. "It all starts fresh for us, starting today."
Brady said that Belichick has not used last season's failure as a tool to motivate his team — not yet, at least. If the Super Bowl comes up, it is in the context of game films and adjustments, just like any other game, Brady said.
But that doesn't help soothe the pit in his stomach when he watches it.
"When you see the game, you think about how you felt after the game," he said. "You can't change it at all — you really can't — as hard as you might want to, you can't."
The coach and his players were already in harmony when addressing the 18-1 season, parroting the philosophy that they just needed to get better with each practice and each day. The focus is on the short term, Belichick said, not the long term — just like every other year, whether the team won the Super Bowl or missed the playoffs.
"I don't think he's concerned with what we did last year," Brady said. "I think he's concerned with what we did today."
With reporters, Belichick made only one reference to the Super Bowl, when he was talking about the work he and his team have put in since last season ended.
"For you, this is kind of like the first day of football season," he said. "But for us, the first day of the season was probably the Monday after the Super Bowl when we started making decisions.
"To me, the '08 season started back in February. There's been a lot of work leading up to yesterday and today. ... It's not like we just rolled out the ball today and said, 'Let's start playing football.'"
Also Thursday, the Patriots signed defensive tackle Titus Adams and placed 12 players on the physically unable to perform list, including defensive backs Rodney Harrison and Ellis Hobbs, receiver Wes Welker and linebacker Mike Vrabel. ... Also on the PUP list is offensive lineman Nick Kaczur, who was in court Tuesday in upstate New York dealing with a misdemeanor charge of drug possession. ... OL Lavdrim Bautra was released to make room for Mayo on the 80-man roster.
