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March 30, 2020 at 5:13 pm
BOSTON (CBS) — It’s very much an offseason of change for the New
England Patriots. If there’s anyone suited to reflect on that change, it would
be Matthew Slater, the man who suddenly finds himself as a the longest-tenured
member of the team.
Slater spoke with reporters on
Monday, and while Tom Brady was an obvious topic of conversation, that wasn’t
the only now-former teammate that the longtime Patriots captain discussed.
On special teams alone, Slater
has had to say goodbye to Stephen Gostkowski and Nate Ebner. Gostkowski had
briefly been the longest-tenured Patriot after Brady’s departure, but the team
released the veteran kicker.
The longtime special teams
captain had nothing but effusive praise for the man who replaced Adam
Vinatieri.
“You really can’t say enough good
things about Stephen and what he’s done for this organization,” Slater said.
“You think about the beginning of his career, and when he was drafted here. He
was drafted to replace a guy who is maybe the best kicker in the history of the
league, with some of the things [Vinatieri has] been able to accomplish. For
Stephen to come in here and keep his head down, and year after year lead by
example, work at his craft, try to get himself better, be there for his
teammates, be just a light within the locker room that brought laughter and joy
to the locker room, the type of man that he is, the friendship that he offered
to so many of us. He’s another guy that you just feel a lot of gratitude toward
because he did so much to lead the way.”
Slater added that Gostkowski deserves placement right up there
with everybody else when talking about the most important players of the
dynasty.
“I think he’s a guy that should
be mentioned right up there with some of the guys who have really carried the
flag on this,” Slater said. “I know personally, I had a special connection with
Stephen, me being a special teams guy and him being a specialist. We spent a
lot of time together. I’m thankful for a guy like that. He showed me how to be
a pro, he showed me how to go about my business, he showed me how to at times
not take this team too seriously but at the same time take it very seriously.
There’s a thin line there and I think he walked it as well as anyone. I’m
thankful for the example that he set for me and the time we spent together and
wish him nothing but the best.”
On Ebner, Slater said that he and the former rugby star worked closely,
ever since Ebner entered the league in 2012. Slater also said that much of
Ebner’s work has gone largely unnoticed, despite its importance.
“I think for me, I’ve worked more closely with Nate than any player on
our roster over the last eight years, by a long shot. I’ve spent more time in
meetings, more time on the practice field with Nate Ebner than any player,
maybe in my career,” Slater said of his fellow special teams ace. “So, his
value to what we did in the kicking game, it just was off the charts. It would
never be something that gets talked about because there’s so many intricacies
within the kicking game that get overlooked, but the things that he has done
for our football team on and off the field over the last eight years have been
tremendous.”
Matthew Slater and Nate Ebner (Photo by Darren
McCollester/Getty Images)
Even though Slater was
already a veteran leader when Ebner arrived in Foxboro, Slater said he did
plenty of learning from Ebner.
“I know personally as a player, no player has challenged me more, has
pushed me more, has gotten more out of me as a teammate than him. I certainly
thanked him for that when I found out that he was leaving, but I certainly am
going to miss that,” Slater said. “What he did for us as a communicator, you
think of him almost as a third coach on the field. He did so much and he got
guys lined up, he got guys on the same page, and he did it not only year after
year, but week after week, day after day. I mean, he was so consistent in what
he brought to the table.”
Of course, the NFL is
all about change. Still, someone like Slater who’s been able to be the rare
player who sticks with one team for more than a decade certainly has a unique
ability to appreciate the special connections that are made along the way.
