Developing nose for ball
Wilfork makes seven tackles
FOXBOROUGH -- Growing up in southern Florida and playing at the University of Miami, it'd be natural to assume Patriots rookie Vince Wilfork was a Dolphins fan. Bad assumption. Wilfork hates the Dolphins. So what kind of day did the 6-foot-2-inch, 325-pound nose tackle have against the teal and orange yesterday?
"Just think about it," said the jovial middle man who collected seven tackles (five solo) and a sack. "Being from Florida, beating up on the Dolphins, and setting the record [for consecutive victories] how you think I feel?"
Wilfork, who picked up where he left off last week after a solid effort against Buffalo, actually responded to the charges made against him by several Bills linemen. After the game, Jonas Jennings complained that Wilfork had made helmet-to-helmet contact, and Chris Villarrial claimed Wilfork kicked him while Villarrial was on the ground.
The allegations caused Wilfork to roll his eyes.
"This is a contact sport," he said. "If they hate you in the end, oh well, they need to retire. I'm not a cheap-shot artist. You can ask all the teams we've played. We've played four teams. Ask any of them. Ask the Dolphins. [Jennings and Villarrial] can take it how they want. That won't stop me from playing the way I play.
"Like I said, it's a contact sport. If you don't want to get hit don't play football."
Wilfork considers yesterday's performance the best of his young career, especially considering he is still adjusting to New England's complex defensive schemes. Sounding very much like he has bought into his coach's philosophies, Wilfork said he won't rest on his laurels.
"There's always room to get better. I can always improve," said Wilfork. "But I'm getting to the point where I'm starting to know where I have to be and I know where I have to play on a blocking team. It's just about practice and practice and taking reps after reps and watching films after films. There's a lot to it. Just by watching films you're not going to learn the New England Patriots. And I'm just getting to the point where I'm feeling real comfortable."
Even coming from a high-profile program such as Miami, where Wilfork amassed 148 tackles (73 solo) and 14 sacks, adjusting to life in the NFL, particularly with the Patriots, takes time.
"It was totally new to me," said Wilfork. "Playing 3-4 and playing nose. I played nose [at Miami] but I was a one-gap. Now I'm a two-gap . . . I have my linebackers in back of me who can scrape up everything. Anything [that gets] behind me, they're going to knock your head off. A lot of people want to run at us, but starting today, I think we showed that we are capable of stopping the run."
And all the sweeter to begin seeing the light against the Dolphins.
"I was always a Buffalo fan. Hated the Dolphins," said Wilfork. "So today I had some extra motivation because it was them. I mean, I have a lot of people who know me [in South Florida] and they were watching me play. And so today to have a step forward, that was great. It may not have been our greatest game but it was a step forward, and as long as it isn't a step backwards that's a good day."
