Patriots cancel OTAs to go paint-balling as a team instead
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick canceled the team’s final two OTAs and took players paint-balling instead to build camaraderie and have some fun.
New England head coach Bill Belichick has a heart after all – and may just be more fun-loving than you or I might normally give him credit for. The NFL’s resident “grumpy old man” decided to cancel the team’s final two OTAs that had been scheduled for Monday and Tuesday of this week in order to take his players and coaches paint-balling.
https://twitter.com/Patriots/status/1138427972099203072
Reportedly, the vast majority of this year’s squad attended the experience, which obviously was meant for fun but also for team-building and chemistry-creation as well.
There was even a bit of drama, as according to a new report, linebacker Kyle Van Noy sustained a minor injury after taking a paintball to the face – from none other than Bill Belichick himself.
“I got hit, I’m telling you. This paintball hit me in the mask, and the mask hit my tooth and my s— still hurts,” Van Noy said on Tuesday while playing Fortnite online. Fellow linebacker and friend Dont’a Hightower then successfully goaded Van Noy into revealing the identity of the gunman who shot him in the face.
“Bill got my a–,” Van Noy admitted finally.
Last season, Belichick and the Patriots also ended their offseason work early in June to participate in some fun team-building at Fenway Park.
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The Patriots now will enjoy a “summer vacation” of sorts before reconvening on Wednesday, July 26 for training camp. While the exact dates and times are still up in the air, training camp for the team will presumably begin with the first scheduled practice occurring the next day, Thursday July 27.
It will be the last opportunity for fans and members of the media alike to get a look at the team before preseason action begins in August.