Belichick, Garoppolo Sidestep DeflateGate Questions: 'We're On To Next Year'
BOSTON (CBS) -- There's a very good chance Jimmy Garoppolo will be the starting quarterback when the Patriots open the 2015 season on September 10 at Gillette Stadium.
While Friday was the first time Tom Brady and Garoppolo hit the field for the team's OTAs, the second-year quarterback sounds pretty ready to scramble if need be during the upcoming season. He got plenty of practice on Friday, just not on the football field.
Watch: Tom Brady Practices
With Brady not talking, Garoppolo was hit with a barrage of DeflateGate questions following Friday's workout. He eluded each one as if it was a 300-pound defender chasing him out of the pocket.
"I'm just going out to practice every day, trying to improve and make my teammates better and myself better," he replied when asked about potentially being New England's opening night starter. "I just have the mindset that I'm trying to get better. That's all you can control at the end of the day."
Garoppolo said he blocked out much of the DeflateGate noise this offseason. He threw with some Patriots receivers in California this offseason, and spent a good chunk of time in the playbook.
That's a very good thing for the Patriots, with Brady facing a four-game suspension from the league. The four-time Super Bowl champion quarterback has appealed that suspension, but no date has been set for a hearing.
"He's accomplished a ton. Four Super Bowl rings is as impressive as it gets," Garoppolo said of Brady, quickly shifting the focus away from No. 12. "But you have to worry about the things you can control. I've been coming out every day just trying to improve every day. That's all I can worry about right now."
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick also had little to say about DeflateGate in his first appearance since the release of the Wells Report. When asked if the controversy has taken away from his enjoyment of New England's Super Bowl XLIX victory, Belichick used a phrase he made famous in 2014.
"We're on to next year. It's 2015," replied Belichick. "You can forget about last year, that was last year."
He said even less when asked if he was preparing to have Garoppolo as his starting quarterback to begin the season.
"We're just going day-by-day at this point," he said. "Everybody is working hard to try and get better."
It's clear the Patriots are already in mid-season form when it comes to addressing the media. We've lost count with how many "Trying to get betters" have been uttered at Gillette, and we're just a week into OTAs.