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Bill on Maroney

FOXBOROUGH -- Patriots coach Bill Belichick held his Friday press conference (10:45 a.m.) and was asked about how close running back Laurence Maroney (groin) is to returning to action.

"He's making progress, he's doing some things on the field, it will probably be a game-time decision," Belichick said. "He's definitely getting closer."

At the end of the press conference, Belichick talked at length about Chuck Fairbanks' visit to the team on Thursday. He raved about Fairbanks' ability as a talent scout.

"He had tremendous success at Oklahoma and of course he came here and for six years built this team into one of the best teams in the National Football League," Belichick said. "He acquired, in my opinion, a rare [group] of talent. Not only did he get it between '73 and '78, but the core of that team was really the core of the Super Bowl team in '85."