Patriots’ Jonas Gray On Sports Illustrated Cover, Matt Patricia Praises Calvin Johnson

Hello, and welcome to another edition of ‘The Patriot Way’, your number one source to New England Patriots news and analysis from around the web.

Bill Belichick: Julian Edelman Is ‘A Tough Kid,’ ‘Very Willing Blocker’

From Doug Kyed of NESN

"“Julian is a tough kid. We knew that right from the beginning. He’s always been a very willing blocker. Technique and angles and really understanding where the running play is intended to go based on what happens on the play can definitely affect the blocking, and certainly we get a lot of different looks from the defense relative to different run-force combinations and alignments and so forth. We have to all be on the same page on those to try to a) get a hat on a hat but b) to get the most dangerous guy. I’d say that’s (the) key part of the blocking for the receivers is getting a guy, of course that’s part of it, but it’s getting the most dangerous guy."

SI cover: Out of nowhere: Patriots running back Jonas Gray

From Scooby Axson of SI

"For 24-year-old Jonas Gray, most of the football watching nation had never heard of him until he let loose on Sunday night against the Indianapolis Colts, carrying the ball 37 times for a career-high 201 yards and a New England Patriots franchise record four touchdowns in a 42-20 rout.Gray, who is on the national cover of this week’s Sports Illustrated, had just 131 career rushing yards before the game."

Coaches’ leftovers: Megatron a top target

From Lee Schechter of ESPN Boston

"“You have both sides of the coin with him,” Patricia said. “He’s a big, physical, strong player that is good if you are up there on him and even if you are off of him. So, it’s a big challenge for us to see if we can stop that from happening in either situation. I don’t think there is one definitive answer to say this is how you play this guy because I think he has certainly proved that if you are on him, off him, you double him, three guys on him, guys over the top, guys underneath, I think he has been extremely productive in all those situations.”"