Dear Coach,
Remember last offseason when I hit free agency, and no one wanted me? Story of my football life!
Looking back on my career now, I remember having no delusions about playing quarterback in the National Football League. At a squirrelly 5' 10", I would have had to roll out on a boot action to even see the receivers downfield - and the pro set really isn't my bag anyway, as I'm far more comfortable on the move.
So I end up here, returning punts, playing on special teams, breaking in as a receiver, even playing some cornerback - none of those things in my repertoire before being a Patriot.
But, what the hell, right? Turns out, I'm pretty good at all that stuff.
In college, I had to follow Josh Cribbs as quarterback for Kent State, and all I did was break his school record for yards and touchdowns from scrimmage. I'm a runner, a pure option quarterback that averaged over six yards per carry, so many thought that when you drafted me in the seventh round in 2009, that you did so to promote what was The Next Big Thing in the NFL at the time - that is, running the Wildcat.
But you lined me up as a receiver from day one, as the Wildcat was never your style. Eventually, I had to follow Welker's long-running act, but before that you used me primarily as a punt returner - and you what the funny thing is? Cribbs did the same thing with Cleveland and has been doing it longer, but I've had the better success at it - yet there was some clamoring from the media and some fans earlier this spring when he was available that you should give him a shot at returning punts.
It makes me laugh because it's New England, and the fans are crazy and only want whats best for the team, but that usually means wanting every free agent that comes down the pike. In other places, that might be construed as the fan base being unhappy with my performance, but here it's just the fans wanting to see us beat the pants off of every team we face...
...and not just beat them, but to leave no doubt. Those guys pissed Tommy off something fierce and simply winning isn't going to be good enough. He's going to want to humiliate our opponents, to bully them and push them around - even though you told the media guys the other day that stomping everyone wasn't important to you, but you're not going to be able to play that off once we start running the score up on folks - and I can't wait to be a part of that.
Sincerely,
JE11
Resume'
Education:
Kent State University
Work Experience:
2009 - Present: New England Patriots
Regular season: 266 receptions, 2742 yards (10.3 avg.), 14 touchdowns
132 punt returns, 1620 yards (12.3 avg.), 4 touchdowns
24 rushing attempts, 147 yards (7.4 avg.)
26 kick returns, 563 yards (21.7 avg.)
22 tackles, 2 forced fumbles
Playoffs: 51 receptions, 529 yards (10.4 avg.), 4 touchdowns
1 passing attempt, 1 completion, 51 yards (51.0 avg.) 1 touchdown
21 punt returns, 284 yards (13.5 avg.)
3 kick returns, 73 yards (24.3 avg.)
Awards:
2014 - Super Bowl Champion
2013 - USA Today All Joe Team
Personal Information:
Born 22 May, 1986 at Redwood City, California
Height: 5' 10"
Weight: 200
Website:
Julian Edelman Player Profile - Foxborough Free Press
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