FOXBOROUGH – Patriots coach Bill Belichick held his regular Friday press conference a bit earlier than normal today (9:45 a.m.), with the team leaving for San Francisco after its practice this afternoon. Here were a few nuggets of note:
1) Memories of Candlestick Park. Belichick opened by reflecting on some of his memories from games at Candlestick Park. When he was with the Giants, Belichick said it seemed like he was out there every year. “It has a great tradition, and there have been some great teams there,” he said, before reflecting on some past contests.
2) Game to be played on grass. Belichick made the point that the Patriots don’t play too many games on grass this season, but this will be the first. “Going back to an old stadium, grass, 49ers, so there is a little different flavor to it this weekend,” he said.
3) Flags haven’t been thrown. When a reporter pointed out that the Patriots have been flagged for just seven accepted penalties, Belichick indicated that has been a positive aspect to the season. “It’s always been a point of emphasis and it’s been a strong one this year,” he said, noting that one penalty came on the last play of the Jets game when the team was kneeling on the ball. “We’ve done a good job not hurting ourselves with penalties.”