David Andrews will use time on PUP to mentor Patriots' young offensive linemen
FOXBORO -- After a busy offseason, David Andrews is ready to get back to football. However, his health will keep him waiting a little bit longer.
Which is OK for Andrews, because it will give him a little more time to do his thing as a captain and teach some of New England's young offensive linemen.
While New England's veteran players reported to Foxboro on Tuesday, Andrews has been around since last week. New England's starting center is beginning camp on the PUP list as he continues to recover from January shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum. He's been working with the team's strength and conditioning staff while others have done some football work. Andrews has also been chatting with Mac Jones to make sure they're on the same page heading into the new season.
"It was good to be in a couple of days and hear some things, kind of get a jump start on things," he said on his Tuesday Zoom session with reporters.
Andrews is also making sure he fulfills his captain duties with New England's young offensive linemen, including first-round pick Cole Strange. The rookie will likely be starting next to Andrews at left guard, and he has a great leader to draw from as he guides his way through his first NFL season.
Andrews remembers having veterans like Ryan Wendell and Sebastian Vollmer at his disposal when he came into the league as an undrafted free agent. They showed him the ropes, but made sure that Andrews did the heavy lifting himself. That is the approach he'll take with Strange and the other young players along the New England offensive line.
"They expected certain things of me because that's what they were used to. As a competitor, I liked that. They were challenging me and I knew I could do this," said Andrews. "I messed up a lot, but that was something I enjoyed as a rookie and it helped me. They weren't holding my hand all the time, they were challenging me.
"Cole has done a great job embracing the challenge," Andrews continued. "It's weird that I'm on the other side of the coin now."
Before his seventh season in the NFL and with the Patriots, Andrews made sure to enjoy his summer. He and his family went for a trip to Martha's Vineyard, which was not ruined by rainy New England conditions this time around. He was the honorary pace car driver a the Ambetter 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway a few weeks ago. Most jarring, though, is that Andrews shaved off some of his usual scruff. (Don't worry, he's growing it back.)
He's not sure when he'll see the field in camp, but it doesn't sound like it will be too long before Andrews is back out there hiking the ball to Jones and New England's other quarterbacks.
"We'll see. Just taking it day by day," he said. "The biggest thing is to be ready to go Week 1. That is the main goal. I'm going to keep doing what the training staff has me doing to progress me. I'll do what I can to be back out there as soon as possible."