O'Brien continues to be impressed by Edelman's instincts.
New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman (11) practices one-handed catches during the second day of NFL football training camp in Foxborough, Mass., Friday, July 27, 2012. FOXBOROUGH -- New England Patriots special teams coach Scott O’Brien still remembers when Julian Edelman was first sent to him.
He was green, had no idea how to field punts, but O’Brien still felt Edelman contained a world of potential.
”He had some natural instincts, pretty good ball skills, but it was a learning curve for him not only to learn how to catch the ball, but to understand what the ball was doing in the air, how it was going to come down. He worked really hard on it,” O’Brien said.
Four years later, Edelman, a former college quarterback who averaged 10.6 yards per punt return last season, is now one of the better return men in the league.
By returning a 72-yard punt for a touchdown in the Pats’ Week 11 game against the Kansas City Chiefs, a 34-3 victory, he became the fourth player in team history to return multiple punts for scores, joining Troy Brown, Irving Fryar and Michael Haynes.
Edelman, now a wide receiver, says that his success is the result of hard work, preparation and good instincts.
“You can study the scheme of how we’re going to block the defenders and the kickoff team and what you can expect and trust your teammates are going to make their blocks,” he said. “Football is football. There is always going to be a guy there; there is always going to be something there. It’s like NASCAR: you see smoke, put the pedal to the metal, you find the lane and go. That’s how that is.”
O’Brien echoed his sentiments and feels that Edelman should only continue to improve with more experience.
“He still has some things he’s working on. But he feels more comfortable,” he said. “He plays everything before the play even happens, which is what you’re looking for.”