Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez is using his time off for recovery.
*ESPNBoston.com* and the *Hartford Couran*t reported over the last two days that the fourth-round rookie did indeed undergo surgery on his right hip after the close of New England's season, which ended with a 28-21 loss to the Jets in the second-round divisional playoffs.
Hernandez missed the final two regular-season games after his injury. When he returned to play the Jets for the third and final showdown of the 2010 season, he only managed one 4-yard catch (he had two touchdown receptions in the Packers game, in which he sustained the suspending injury).
But the tight end, who now has almost a full season under his belt, is not letting the hip slow him down. He told 80 kids at his brother's skills camp in Southington, Conn., on Sunday, "You can't be the same player two years in a row. You've got to be better every year."
Read similar stories in the *Boston Herald* and the *Boston Globe*.
*ESPNBoston.com* amended its draft analysis yesterday, which compared the Patriots with competition in the draft over the last five years, with a Pats-Ravens cross section. The initial analysis, also a five-year history, looks at the Patriots,' Colts,' Steelers' and Chargers' picks over the first three rounds.
The *Boston Herald* offers its own slant on the labor talks. On Sunday, the *Boston Globe* addressed assistant coaches in the negotiations.
