New England Patriots wide receiver Tyquan Thornton has been practicing with a Patriots legend, who also used to play the same position.
Patriots Hall of Famer Troy Brown, the team’s receivers coach, has been working with the rookie during training camp. Thornton was seven years old when Brown played his final snap with the Patriots. Now, the rookie wideout is looking to learn from Brown as he tries to leave his own mark in the New England offense.
The second-year wideout from Baylor has been watching Brown’s film. Brown had a tenacious, rugged play style, and one aspect of Brown’s game stood out to Thornton.
“His motivation,” Thornton said, via NESN’s Dakota Randall. “Getting coached up by him, then you can go into him and see the film. He used to put fear in guys’ hearts out there — and he tells us every day, he reminds us.
“He’s a dog. He’s a dog. Probably the only person I know that played the wideout position, the Star (defensive) position, and going on defense and going to block punts — that’s a true definition of a dog.”
Brown had decent statistics as a defender as well as his reputation for being a stout receiver. For instance, he had three interceptions in the 2004 season, and finished one interception behind Eugene Wilson for the team lead that season.
Thornton won’t probably have the defensive prowess that Brown showed a bit of during his career. However, Brown’s motivation and body of work as a receiver are things that Thornton can try to emulate.
