“Yeah, I get it.”
“The coaches and all the other players, that’s all we want. So if you make that all you want, and you do what it takes to make that happen, learn as much as you can, take the criticism where it comes, and just get better every day, then you’ll fit in just fine.”
He paused. “But if you’re here to showboat, you might as well keep your bags packed. We’re not the flashiest team in the league; we don’t care about that stuff. We’re here to win games. It doesn’t have to look pretty or show up on ESPN every night, it just has to work. You got me?”
“I got you. Thanks for the pep talk.”
Lance looked at me like he wasn’t sure I had listened to a word he’d said, but then he grunted, the same way Coach Armstrong liked to do, and went back to unpacking.
A few minutes later, a knock on the door, then it opened. “Lance!” A booming voice from outside shouted before coming in.
The voice belonged to a mountain of a man, huge and all muscle. Dude was a good 3 inches taller than me and had at least 20-30 pounds on me. Damn.
“Hud!” Lance jumped up and hugged the guy, pulling away and shaking his hand after. I could tell right away that these were two really good friends.
Then it hit me. Hud - Hudson Asher, linebacker, stalwart of the Patriots defense. The guy was a defensive legend in his day. I remember being surprised when I found out he was still playing. The guy had a career resume a mile long, full of accomplishments.
The only one he was still chasing was a championship.
“Drake, this is Hudson Asher. Hud, this is Drake, our new receiver.”
“Good to meet you, Hud.” I stood up from my bed and shook Hud’s hand. I liked to think I had a strong grip, but Hud just crushed me. I pulled my hand back and winced. “Hey man, not too rough on the hands, these are my livelihood!”
Hud beamed back at me. “Mine too. Good to meet you, Drake. I hear good things about you.”
“Yeah, well, they’re all true.”
He nodded. “I have no doubt, and even if I did, I’ll see if you can play as well as you party soon enough.”
What the fuck, was everyone on this team a fucking pro scout? “You guys keep track of all that? Don’t you guys have, you know, games to play?”
Hud got serious. “Yeah, man, everyone’s a scout here. That’s just how we work. You never know who’s gonna figure out who we want to have on our side.” He licked his hips. “And what to do if we see someone on the other side.”
The more I learned about how the Patriots were run, the less I could believe it. This wasn’t a football team, it was a paramilitary organization.
“Yeah, you’ll see my stuff soon enough. Just wait till we get out on the field and you line up across me.”
Hud laughed, a deep laugh that felt like it could cause an earthquake. “You talk big, Rook, but I won’t see you across from me for a while, if ever. You think a rookie gets to play with the first time right off the bat? You’re dreaming.”
Lance ribbed Hud in the stomach. “Lay off him, man, he’s new. He’s been playing with children so far.”
“I know, I know. But there’s one every year, man, I swear. Someone shows up here thinks he’s gonna burn the league up and more often than not he’s out on his ass in a month.”
He chuckled. “And they’re mostly receivers, too. I wonder what it is about receivers.”
I had to get back in there. “Everyone likes seeing big touchdown catches.”
“You’re right, they do, but that’s outside the building. In here we care about being a good teammate just as much as we care about making big plays. The point is, we don’t need to make big plays as long as we win.”
Lance poked Hud again. “I gave him the speech already. Let’s go get some food.”
“He’s gonna hear it over and over till he’s memorized it, I’m just helping him out. Enjoy your first day, rookie, and bring your A-game tomorrow or we’ll know you didn’t.” He turned to Lance. “Food it is, lead on, brother.”
I wondered for a second if they would invite me to eat with them, then I thought back and wondered if I had ever taken a rookie under my wing and helped him out. Nope!
Lance ushered Hud out of the room and I could hear them laughing and joking down the hall as they caught up. They must have run into another one of their friends along the way, there were more greetings as their voices faded.
I had to get ahold of myself. I had to remember why I was here. These guys had given me a chance when no one else would, and here I was griping about the room. Come on, Drake, get your head together.
I wasn’t here to make friends with these guys. I was here to show them what I could do. I needed to prove to them that I was worth keeping around each and every single day, until they realized they couldn’t afford to cut me, and risk me going to another team.