The comparisons seem obvious, but they also go much deeper.
Patriots rookie quarterback Matt Gutierrez has been mentioned in the same breath as the number one guy on New England's depth chart because both he and Tom Brady played collegiately at Michigan (though Gutierrez transferred to Idaho State in his senior year).
If anyone knows how much the two players are alike, it's Gutierrez's high school coach, Bob Ladouceur. That's one reason why Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels talked with Ladouceur a few weeks before the team signed Gutierrez.
"I said, 'I can't tell you anything about his mechanics. You know that stuff better than me, but I can tell you about his character,'" Ladouceur recalled in a Boston Globe article today. He said McDaniels then replied, "We know about his character. We think he's a lot like the guy we have now."
Ladouceur couldn't agree more.
"I think [Brady] is a great competitor and a good athlete and he has tremendous intangibles," Ladouceur continued in today's feature. "I've always believed that about Matt, too. He doesn't have a rifle arm or the great running ability, but he's the whole package. He's smart. He's a winner. He's courageous. I think he's a lot like Tommy Brady."
Elsewhere, on Tuesday, Tedy met Teddy.
Pats linebacker Tedy Bruschi went to our nation's capital to help promote a bill that would increase public awareness of the early warning signs of strokes. While in town, Bruschi met with Massachusetts Senators Ted Kennedy and John Kerry, the former a co-author of the legislation, the latter a supporter thereof.
The issue is something Bruschi has dealt with personally, having suffered a stroke just days after New England's Super Bowl victory in February 2005.
While Bruschi was on Capitol Hill, his teammate, defensive lineman Jarvis Green, has been spending time on Federal Hill.
This offseason, the six-year vet has been interning at a restaurant in the food-famous section of Providence, Rhode Island. He's doing this in advance of the opening of his own sports bar/martini bar in his hometown of Donaldsonville, Louisiana.
"There's a lot I need to learn, and I didn't want to go in blind," Green told the Boston Herald. He also said he's learned a lot from the busboys and waitstaff.
"They're just as important as the manager in many ways for what they do. No matter how you feel, no matter how the customer treats you, at a top level restaurant you have to work with a smile on your face."
Meanwhile, ESPN.com thinks it knows who the "Top 5 Breakout Players" will be in the NFL this season...and a New England Patriot is on the list. Plus, start preparing for your fantasy football drafts. Find out where Laurence Maroney ranks among top fantasy running backs, according to FOXSports.com.
