Lloyd succinct when asked about learning curve

Share

FOXBORO -- The shortest answers from Brandon Lloyd were his most telling.

Speaking with media after a Patriots OTA practice Thursday morning, the team's most intriguing free agent acquisition was asked if he'll have difficulty picking up the Patriots offensive system.

"No," said Lloyd, letting eye contact linger and his two-letter answer hang in the air.

Later, when asked if he'd ever been on a team with so many weapons on it, Lloyd was again succinct.

"No."

The often loquacious Lloyd could have emptied a bag of words to answer both questions, but his brevity is appreciated.

Especially in the wake of listening to Chad Ochocinco's bleatings last year about how hard the offense was, the time it took to get it down and how close he was to playing freely and without thinking.

Because although the Patriots offensive arsenal is loaded, the fact Lloyd gets the offense and brings a skill set that was missing from the 2011 Patriots makes New England better now -- on paper -- than it was last year.

Lloyd's experience working with Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels in 2010 and 2011 makes his transition simple on the Xs and Os end. It's the other elements of getting acclimated that will be a process.

"(I'm) plugging away," said Lloyd. "Getting into the OTAs and understanding the process and the way the plays are called and run and the execution of the workouts and the scheduling. It's been a change and I'm excited to see how everything works out."

Asked about Tom Brady, Lloyd said he's learned that, "He's good. He's good from far away and he's good up close."

And the differences he's seeing in the team-wide atmosphere?

"The coaching, the way that the message is delivered and the way that the coaches coach and the players all fall in line," said Lloyd. "Its been a good experience so far."

With the Patriots' first preseason game looming less than 90 days away, the urgency to figure out the receiving pecking order is on.

Yeah, not really. This whole thing will take time to sort itself out. And despite the fact there are a bunch of names people recognize -- Stallworth, Gaffney, Ochocinco among them -- those players need to create their roles on this team.

"There are a lot of talented pass catchers not only that are on this team and played last year but that are new to the team and were successful at previous stops," said Lloyd. "Theres a lot of talent there."

Even though it's early, Lloyd said, the anticipation and excitement in the group of targets is there.

"Everybody has been communicating and excited. However this pans out, however the lineup falls, its going to be a talented group of players."

Enough said.

Contact Us