PATRIOTS RUNNING BACK KEVIN FAULK

(on being back on the field)
"It's just like missing work. When come back, you're just ready to go to work. You've got a task at hand, and that's to go all the way."

(on if it gives the team confidence to see Tom Brady back on the field)
"Of course it does. Just like it does [to see] Adalius Thomas, Laurence Maroney, and all the guys that were hurt before the season got over last year. It was great to see them out there doing their job and doing what they love to do."

(on not making the playoffs last year)
"You would be lying if you said it [didn't leave] a sour taste, but at the same time, this is a new season. You've got to put that in the back of your mind and let that fuel you to practice better this afternoon, practice better tomorrow, and do something better than you've done it before."

(on whether there's a new dynamic in the locker room this year)
"There's a lot more leadership. A lot of guys that have been around, that have played a lot of football, and understand what it takes to win games in the National Football League."

(on this year's running backs)
"We've got a lot of guys that have played a lot of football in the National Football League in the backfield right now. The only one [who hasn't] probably is BenJarvus [Green-Ellis], but he's had a lot of time last year. He's experienced right now. We just try to take it to the field, take it to practice, try to add our knowledge to our teammates as well as to ourselves."

(on NFL veterans adjusting to their first season with the Patriots)
"Just like any veteran that goes to a new team, it's all about fitting in, not trying to overdo your veteran leadership, but just fitting in and falling into place. When it's that time, you'll know it's that time to fit in. There are a lot of guys that came here and did the same thing."

(on the theory that running backs over thirty drop off significantly)
"It can happen, but it's all on you. It's all on how you prove your body, train your body, and how let your body go through the course of your career."

PATRIOTS RUNNING BACK FRED TALYOR

(on being back on the field)
"It feels great. I'm privileged. We're in a recession and I have a job, so it feels great. It's a different experience. The weather is a lot better than it is in Florida right now, [and] it feels awesome."

(on his veteran leadership)
"I don't want to take too much credit. it's just simple. I've been around for a while, I've seen a lot, and only through my experience is when I speak. I don't want to mislead anyone, but if I see someone slacking or not doing the right thing, I'll kind of pull them aside and say 'Hey, I don't think that will be for the better of the team.' I try not to overstep my boundaries. I do a great job, I think, of knowing when it's a good time to approach someone or be a leader. Granted, you want to be consistent when you're being a leader. You don't want to have those days when you don't feel like getting some guys prepared to practice or play or whatever, so I just try to naturally be myself. I'm just coming in here, I still have to learn the playbook, learn some of my offensive linemen's names and a lot of the coaches' names, so I'm still getting used to everything myself. What I can say is that through my experience, I will say something if I think I can help someone."

(on being around Tom Brady)
"Playing these guys a few times in the playoffs, you look over and say, 'We can beat that team. What do they do that we don't do? We can go and win this game.' But then you get here and you see his passion, you see the way he studies, you see how demanding he is of his players, the leadership. Right in front of you it just jumps out and you see why he's a proven winner."

(on Laurence Maroney)
"[He's a] young guy who is definitely passionate about playing. He reminds me of myself a little bit when I was younger. You have to fight through the injuries, but that's part of the game. But he's definitely fighting and trying to go out there and make a name for himself. He's a good running back. He's a very good running back. Unfortunately, he's had to endure through the bumps and bruises, and if he keeps fighting back he'll be ok."

(on whether the expectation levels are higher in New England than in other places)
"No. It would be the same way in Jacksonville. Each team starts the beginning with that goal (the Super Bowl) ultimately in mind, but in training camp you're just trying to make it to and through the next practice because it's tough."

(on his impressions of Bill Belichick before coming to New England)
"Before I got here, knowing that this has been a team that achieved championship status-and usually your coach has to be a little off track if you're going to be one of those teams that is always wining. Kind of like Coach [Tom] Coughlin, I kind of pictured them in the same mode a little bit. He's very passionate. He's very detail oriented, but he's a little more loose than coach Coughlin was. I think he's going to be a great coach to play for. The perception before I got here was that he was just a hardball, tough, no-nonsense [coach], and he has his-every coach has their moments-but I think it will be a little easier to play for him than it was to play for Coach Coughlin when I first got in. It's not as hardball as I initially though, but it's hard though."

PATRIOTS WIDE RECEIVER GREG LEWIS

(on his impressions of Bill Belichick before coming to New England)
"I thought Coach Belichick was a tough guy, real stringent, army-like and all of that, but being here and being around him, really he's just passionate about football and he wants to get the best out of his players. He doesn't take any nonsense, but like Fred [Taylor] said, he is willing to work with you and get to know you and you can get to know him. He's a good coach to play for."

(on having so many NFL veterans that are new to the Patriots team)
"It's different for me and I can't speak for those guys, but for me, coming from somewhere and being there for six years, you get into a routine of how it was done where you were at. Then you come somewhere new and you have to acclimate and readjust to how things are done here, but I mean, being in the NFL and being a professional, it's your job to get adjusted as quickly as possible and get out there and do what you are capable of doing. There's a learning curve and it's a process, but I think I'm doing my best and that's all I can ask of myself."

(on what excites him about Tom Brady)
"I just like his attitude, his command of the huddle, his fire and his competitiveness. I like to compete a lot and I like to win at everything I do. To have a guy out there that's doing that same thing, that's trying to get the best of his guys, his team, that just makes you want to give it all you've got and lay it on the line for him and the other guys. It just gives you that burst or that feel that 'I want to go out there and get it don't because this guy is giving everything he's got and I want to do the same.'"

(on playing with Randy Moss and Wes Welker)
"It's exciting. Randy is a character; he's almost as funny as me. And Wes just likes to have fun. He jokes around a lot. Joey [Galloway] is the old wily vet , so it's cool to try to finds your niche in that group of characters and just be out there and have fun and try to do your job."

(on his emotions on day one of training camp)
"I get excited just to get back out there and get started, but once you hit the field that 'man, this is training camp again' sort of hits you, but you still want to go out there and just have fun and make the most of each opportunity that you get to go out there on the field. A lot of people don't get the opportunity to play in the NFL, to play for the New England Patriots. You're privileged and you need to act like it and go out there and work hard, have fun, and just make the most of everything."