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00:00Let's check in with a member of the New England Patriots,
00:02Dietrich Wise of the Pats.
00:04He joins us here on WEEI, and he's
00:07brought to you by Shaw's and Star Market,
00:09perfecting the art of Fred's.
00:10Dietrich, how are we doing this morning?
00:12I'm doing well.
00:13How are you doing?
00:14We're doing well.
00:14It's a busy news day out there for us.
00:18I'm curious how and when you found out the news.
00:22We heard your teammate Jelani Tavai driving
00:24into the facility today here on WEEI.
00:26He didn't know as of like 8 AM.
00:28How did you find out?
00:31We found out today during squad meeting.
00:34What was the reaction by you and your teammates?
00:38You know, on the defensive side, we really
00:42just go out there and play our game.
00:44And whatever coach says is a starter, we ride behind them.
00:48So once he told us that Jacoby was a starter,
00:51we was like, all right, this guy, we're going to ride behind.
00:55We put our faith in him to lead the offense, I think.
00:58Oh, I'm sorry, keep going.
01:00No, I was just.
01:01OK, so when did you find out about this meeting?
01:04Because yesterday, as far as we knew,
01:07there wasn't going to be any availability for Gerard Mayo.
01:10So when did you guys find out you
01:12were going to be called in for a squad meeting
01:15where you were going to get this announcement?
01:17We have a squad meeting every day.
01:19Got it.
01:19So this was a scheduled thing you
01:21were going to be talking to, so it changed on the media side.
01:23Was there anything more than just an announcement
01:26from Gerard Mayo?
01:27Did he elaborate?
01:28Did he let you guys know that he was open to hearing
01:32any feedback on it?
01:33How did that go?
01:34No, he kept it short.
01:37He told us who the starter was, and we went on by a day.
01:41So is that just for the quarterback position,
01:43or does he go through in maybe any of the other battles?
01:46Does he tell you who the starting offensive line is,
01:48get into the defense, or is this just a QB decision?
01:52No, I mean, he just told us today
01:55who the starting quarterback was.
01:57I think, yeah, that's all.
02:00Those quarterbacks, they get all this special treatment,
02:02don't they?
02:02They really do.
02:03They really do, huh, Dietrich?
02:04All the rules.
02:05Yeah.
02:06Well, they're the star of the league, star of the team.
02:09You know, they're the main people besides the center
02:11who touch the ball every day, and the ball is the program.
02:14So wherever the ball goes, the program goes.
02:17And the more time the ball's in the end zone,
02:19the program gets love and appreciation.
02:21And the person who does all that is a quarterback.
02:24So that's why they get all the blame, all the praise,
02:28everything, so whether it's wanted or unwanted.
02:31Well, speaking of quarterbacks, of all the quarterbacks
02:33you've sacked in your career, which was your favorite?
02:35Which guy was your favorite to hit?
02:39That's a good question.
02:42Oh, man.
02:43Brissett.
02:43No, it was pretty cool.
02:45It was pretty cool sacking a few quarterbacks in my time.
02:49Sacked Drew Brees.
02:50That was pretty cool.
02:53Ben Rothenberger, he's a big guy to get down.
02:55So every time I got to him, I had to make sure he went
02:59to the ground.
03:00Very similar in stature to Josh Allen.
03:05Yeah, those are two different guys right there.
03:06I feel like you could breathe on Drew Brees
03:08and you'd knock him down.
03:09Whereas Rothenberger, you might need help.
03:11He gets the ball out quick.
03:12Yeah, that's true.
03:13He gets the ball out pretty quick.
03:14So for him, it's more so trying to get him down fast
03:17before the ball comes out.
03:19Ben tries to muscle it before he throws the ball in.
03:22So that's kind of how Josh is.
03:24We're talking to Dietrich Wise of the Patriots
03:26here on Jones and Keefe on WEI.
03:29Dietrich, from the outside looking in,
03:30and you can correct us if we're wrong about this,
03:33it feels like communication is all over the place
03:35with this organization in the transition from Bill Belichick
03:39to Gerard Mayo, and even with Elliott Wolfe in the front
03:42office.
03:43How do you feel communication has been not just
03:45on the quarterback, but overall?
03:49I think communication has been really good, actually.
03:53I think the coaching staff and the head coach
03:57is very open and transparent about things
03:59that they are doing, talking about.
04:02We're all on the same page.
04:04We go out there to the field throughout the day.
04:06So I think communication is really, really good.
04:10So I guess, for instance, when you
04:11say the communication is good and you
04:13can talk to all these different coaches,
04:15we're confused sometimes with the messaging from Mayo.
04:17He says, it's a team-wide decision versus my decision.
04:21Like, for instance, with you on defense,
04:23who do you go to when you have a question?
04:25Is it positionally?
04:26Is it the defensive coordinator?
04:27Can you still go to Mayo because you have that relationship?
04:30Who do you go to when you need to communicate something?
04:33Depending on the question, depending on who I go to.
04:35If it's a defensive question, I go to my defensive coaches,
04:39DC, my in-line coach, my outside linebacker coach.
04:42And if it's a dealer question, then I go to Mayo.
04:46How has that been for seeing those guys?
04:49Because you've been here now a while.
04:50You're one of the veteran guys on this team.
04:52You just missed playing with Mayo by a couple of years.
04:55But he's been on the staff for a while.
04:56Covington's been on the staff for a while.
04:58And both of those guys kind of elevating in roles.
05:01So what has that whole transition
05:03been like, not only for them, but for you?
05:05You were used to seeing those guys in different roles
05:07than you do see now.
05:10Yeah, it's the elevation and the evolution of their journey.
05:18Then we played with Mayo.
05:19You already said that.
05:20But watching him from coming in as a first-time Patriots coach
05:23to now who he is now, seeing his growth, his leadership,
05:27his communication skills, and the way he interacts with guys,
05:31and also with DC.
05:34DC came in, worked his way up the ladder.
05:37Now he's at DC.
05:38He's doing a great, great job leading
05:40the defense, being able to communicate exactly what he
05:43wants us to do throughout the day, throughout the practice,
05:47and throughout the year.
05:48Why do you think the coaching staff went
05:50with Jacoby over Drake May?
05:54That's a coach decision.
05:55That's not something I'd ask Mayo or somebody.
05:58But why do you think, though, if you had to guess?
06:02I don't really know.
06:04I mean, I think they both did a great, great job.
06:06It was one of those type of things
06:08where they both showed great things in practice
06:10and great things.
06:11And it kind of just came down to how coach felt.
06:13So that's definitely a Javon Mayo question.
06:16What have you seen those great things from Drake May
06:19that you've seen in practice?
06:22Most definitely.
06:22So Drake definitely hits his targets,
06:26does a good job there, has the ability
06:29to bounce back at the bad plays that he has.
06:33He has a level-headed, poised about himself.
06:37You don't see him get too down or too up.
06:40He's pretty much even-nailed.
06:41So as a young quarterback, that's always good to see.
06:45You know, for years, there's always
06:46been the next man up mentality with the Patriots
06:49and with, you know, Barmore dealing
06:51with what he's dealing with and with Matt Judon traded away.
06:55You on that defensive line kind of anchoring
06:57the defensive line, how much motivation do you guys have?
06:59Some of the big-name guys are gone,
07:01but still trying to get the same results.
07:04You know, as we told the guys, you know, we don't.
07:09And coach always told us this.
07:11Coach, Bill Belichick, he always told us.
07:14He said, we don't need superheroes and Superman
07:17and things like that.
07:18What we need is guys doing their fundamentals and technique
07:22every single time at a high level.
07:25And that's pretty much it.
07:26Paying attention to detail, doing the small things,
07:28extraordinary, and going out there and doing your 111.
07:33One, even though we missed those guys,
07:35want those guys to play for us this year
07:37and things like that.
07:38We know in the grand scheme of things,
07:40they're not going to be here.
07:41So we have to be able to continue doing our job
07:44and continue doing the small things at a high level.
07:47So with all the guys we have, I believe
07:49that we'll be able to still put a good team on tape
07:53to be able to have the results that we want as a defense
07:57and also as a team.
08:01Before we let you go, I think if I have this right,
08:03it's a four-day mandated CBA break coming up
08:07going into next week, if I'm not wrong.
08:10That's not enough time to go to Vegas or the Caribbean,
08:12I wouldn't think.
08:13But what, do you have anything planned?
08:14You never know.
08:14What do you have planned for the next few days?
08:18A lot of R&R and refocusing, getting ready back,
08:22getting back the body and mind right for the season.
08:25OK, very good.
08:26Dietrich Wise of the New England Patriots.
08:28We appreciate it.
08:29Thanks so much.
08:30No problem.
08:30You have a great day.
08:31All right, thank you, you too.
08:32All right, Dietrich Wise joining us here,
08:34brought to you by Shaw's and Star Market.
08:36They haven't announced captains yet,
08:37but he was a captain the last three years, I believe.
08:39Or the last two years, maybe?
08:40Yeah, he's definitely been one.
08:42He's been one of them.
08:43So look, I get why.
08:45Yeah, Astrod.
08:46Yeah, smart.
08:47I mean, go ahead, Ness.
08:48I mean, how can you go wrong with that one?
08:51I don't know, it's not up to me.
08:52It's above my pay grade.
08:53Go ask him.
08:53Well, the defensive guys do have a little bit of an out.
08:55When there's like, listen, I'm not
08:57in the huddle with those guys.
08:58We go up against them sometimes.
09:00It depends on what they're running.
09:01He might have gone up against Joe Milton more
09:02than the other two guys, for all we know in practice.
09:05So they did their squad meeting, as normal.
09:07I wonder if they, and he didn't seem
09:10to think it was too abnormal, at least outwardly.
09:14But it feels abnormal to me, the way this all went down.
09:16But he said they had their squad meeting.
09:18He said, hey, it's Jacoby, and that was it.
09:20Yeah.
09:20That's his understanding of how it went down.
09:22But thank God he did that.
09:23Otherwise, imagine if he told the media yesterday,
09:25like, those guys wouldn't even have cared.
09:27You think if Dietrich Wise found out yesterday
09:29that Jacoby was starting, do you
09:31think he would even bat an eye?
09:32No.
09:32It doesn't sound that way.
09:33I don't think he'd give a rat's ass.
09:35So if it really is that simple, if it really
09:36is as simple and basic and just like, oh, whatever,
09:39shoulder shrug, as Wise made it sound to us just now,
09:42why'd they wait so long?
09:43It's a good point, Keith.
09:44Why?
09:44He couldn't have said it yesterday.
09:45Couldn't have said it yesterday?
09:46Couldn't have said it Monday?
09:47Yeah.
09:47Couldn't have done it before?
09:48That's what the whole meeting was.
09:49If it's really that easy, you could have done it,
09:51I don't know, before this morning.
09:53So it's still weird to me.
09:54What do you make of that?