Over the course of the next few months Patriots backup quarterback Rohan Davey will chronicle for the readers of Patriots.com his experiences playing this spring with the Berlin Thunder in NFL Europe. Today's installment has Davey's thoughts on a 4-0 start to the season, a scouting report on fellow LSU alum, now Patriots teammate, Marquise Hill and a look ahead to what fans can expect this weekend in Berlin's game against the Amsterdam Admirals. Last weekend Davey completed 17-of-26 passes for 198 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions in a 14-10 come-from-behind win over the Rhein Fire.
We trailed the whole game this week. They beat us up for 52 minutes and then we pulled it out in the last eight minutes. It wasn't what you would call a stellar performance, especially by our offense. The defense played great. They kept us in the game and we were able to make some plays down the stretch to pull it out, but we didn't play well at all.
I think it is good for me to experience a game like that though, to comeback through the adversity of the ankle injury and mistakes. It's good to get some experience with that adversity because basically all the games in the NFL come down to that situation. From being in New England and being there for two years I have seen those games. All of them come down to the last drive or the defense has to stop them or the offense has to score, something like that late. It's definitely good to experience something like that and to come away with the win.
The first interception that I threw early was just miscommunication with Chas (Gessner). I anticipated him doing something and he did something else. It happens sometimes. It was one of those routes that takes a lot of communication and you have to be on the right page together. On that play we weren't on the right page and that's what happens.
The second interception came on a long pass where we were just taking a shot down the field. It was third down and you just take a shot. If you hit it that's good and if you don't then it's just like a punt because they caught it on like the two-yard line. It was one of those things where you just take one for the team.
One key play in the second half was a 45-yard completion on third-and-25 that set up the game-winning touchdown. Whenever there is a situation like that with third and that long, you just try to make sure you get half of it. That basically was our thinking, and it just so happened that the shot opened up and we took it. Aaron Boone was able to make a key catch to set up the score.
Right now I feel as if whatever a situation calls for and throwing in any situation, I can make the best of it along with my teammates and people around me. No one does it on their own, but I feel like when you are thrown into any situation you have to come out on top.
Guys around here are real positive right now, workmanlike really. The talent level here and the competition is so close, I mean we haven't won a game convincingly yet. We've been fortunate because we have good players and we've made big plays down the stretch. But we still haven't put together a complete game. So it's not like we can just get comfortable and say we can run through the league. We still have to play and we still have to go out and compete and win. But it's real positive and upbeat here. We are still working hard and that's the bottom line. We just have to keep plugging.
Our coaching staff is also real workmanlike and that's how they go about it. I try to basically bring some of the stuff that I know from New England and being with Coach Belichick as far as being workmanlike but having fun at the same time. That's what you try to bring to the field and that's basically how our team is. We have fun, but when it's time to play or practice we get after it.
This week we play Amsterdam for the second time this year. They are coming off a big win. They beat Frankfurt, a team that was unbeaten along with us. Their defense is playing real well, both up front and in the secondary. They look a little different from when we played them the first time. Right now they are just playing real well on defense. This is like a different team now from when we played them a few weeks ago. They are playing a lot better and seem to be a lot more comfortable with their schemes and what they are trying to do. We expect them to come out and try to beat two unbeaten teams two weeks in a row. It should be a nice little test for us. But if we come out and play well we should be fine.
I was excited to see that the Patriots drafted Marquise Hill last weekend. I spoke to him before the draft when he was getting ready to come out and he was kind of in between whether he was coming or not. I am just glad it worked out for him to go as high as he did and for him to come to New England with Coach Belichick and the rest of the coaches that he'll have on defense. I am sure they will put him in the right position to do whatever it is that they want him to do and expect out of him. I am excited for him. I am excited to have another (LSU) Tiger on the team. It's a good situation. He's in the same mold, same type as Willie Mac (McGinest). I think that's probably along the lines of what the coaches are looking for. He's a big, long guy. He's still young. He was only a junior this year, so he still has a lot of upside. He has a lot of learning to do, but I am sure he will get groomed the right way.
As told to Patriots Football Weekly's Andy Hart
