Scott enjoying chance at new start in New England

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FOXBORO -- Trevor Scott says it himself.

"I'm pretty simple."

Once football season starts he's all about the game, all the time. Not a surprising point of view considering Scott was thrown off his path in 2010.

A sixth-round pick by Oakland in the 2008 NFL draft, Scott had five sacks coming off the bench. The next season he upped the effort and earned more snaps, more sacks (seven), and six starts.

Scott started Oakland's first 10 games of 2010 before his progress got derailed. An ACL injury dumped him off onto IR November 25.

He returned for a full season but had lost his edge. Part of the problem was rehabbing during the lockout ("It just kind of sucks," Scott had said of being denied communication with team trainers), part of it was bad timing (2011 was a contract year).

Bottom line for the Raiders: Their pass-rushing specialist had just seven combined tackles and zero sacks.

But he battled.

"No matter what happened -- on or off the field -- I just kept working hard," Scott said on Sunday. "I just kept persevering through my injury and all that stuff.

"As much as it's a physical injury, it's also mental battle too. You have to stay positive and focus on your goals. Mine was to get back on the field and do well. I'm very happy that I'm here."

New England presented a chance to "start over." The way things went down in Oakland was unfortunate. It's also old news.

"It was what it was. It was the past. I don't really want to talk about that," he said with a tight smile.

And why bother?

In his first preseason game with the Patriots, Scott put on a show at defensive end with three tackles, three quarterback hits and a sack. New England has also used him during camp at linebacker, too, and the scheme versatility should help his cause.

Is one preseason game too small a sample size to get excited? Sure. But whether Scott is going against first or third string offense doesn't matter -- each rep rolls into getting that second chance.

"You just have to keep it all in perspective. At the end of the day, this is a game. We do this because we love to do it.

"I just like to do my job and win."

It's as simple as that.

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