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Pats work out White

Email|Link|Comments (10) Posted by Christopher L. Gasper, Globe Staff March 19, 2009 03:08 PM

The Patriots worked out West Virginia's Pat White on Wednesday, the Globe has confirmed.

The news was first reported by NFL.com, which also said White worked out for the Broncos and Josh McDaniels.

White is one of the draft's more intriguing prospects. He was a spread option quarterback at West Virginia, rushing for 4,480 yards in four seasons, an NCAA record for career rushing yardage by a QB. He also completed 64.8 percent of his passes, breaking the West Virginia school record of Marc Bulger.

Most teams have projected White as a wide receiver in the NFL, but after an impressive passing display at the NFL Scouting Combine, White began to gain consideration as a QB.

At the West Virginia Pro Day on March 12, White, who would like to be a quarterback but has made it clear he's willing to do whatever it takes to make it in the NFL, did not run pass routes for teams after no team requested him to do so.

He said he was willing to do those in a private workout.

According to league sources, White worked out as both a wide receiver and a quarterback for the Patriots, who might be viewing him as a versatile player that they could use in their own version of the Wildcat, which grew in popularity around the NFL after the Miami Dolphins used it to score a 38-13 victory over the Patriots on Sept. 21.

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10 comments so far...

Does anyone remember the Michael Bishop era (experiment)? What a distraction (and waste of a draft pick). Just draft a real wide receiver in the second round - Kenny Britt from Rutgers.

Posted by Jimbo March 19, 09 03:47 PM

I thought the headline would be "Pats Work out Pat" :-)

I LIKE Pat White a LOT. He's the the kind of versatile guy that The Hooded One loved to have around. Not sure exactly where he fits, but he could do a lot of things.

Posted by Bruce March 19, 09 04:31 PM

Hey Josh The president of Bad Newz Kennels might be available come September . I know you need a QB . He is looking for work .

Posted by billw March 19, 09 05:03 PM

is this a ploy to get the jets to bite on this guy? I'm willing to bet bb will draft a qb this yearand I also bet we wont have a clue until it happens.

Posted by paul in me March 19, 09 06:26 PM

I usually don't like these so called versatile quarterbacks because they usually have more versatility than they QB in them and often come with a lot of baggage (I'm thinking Michael Vick and Vince Young for starters). Pat White seems like he has much more control on his life though and it definitely looks as if he's ready to take whatever the NFL throws at him. After four years in college it appears thet he would be a positive in the locker room and if I'm the Patriots and he's available later on in the draft, I'd snap him up in a second.

Posted by Dave (Montreal) March 19, 09 06:59 PM

The Patriots are serious about working him out. The Miami wildcat may have been a gimmick play but it kept everybody up at night, allowing the other team less time and energy to prepare for Miami's other strengths and weaknesses. Even in the second meeting in Miami, it wasn't Miami's offense that collapsed. It was their defense giving up 48 points that doomed the fins.

BB adapts good ideas. He may not want a wildcat but a Pittsburgh "slash". Already, BB regularly screens the ball out to a wide receiver. Why not make a lateral and then a second pass downfield to really flummox an opponent?

Posted by PaulK March 19, 09 09:11 PM

I live in the town near where he was born. I have tracked him through college as I moived here 3 years ago. This is one heck of a ball player!

I am a huge Pats fan and have been since day 1. This young man fits the mold in terms of character and performance. Would love to see him in Foxboro.

Posted by Armand Roux March 19, 09 11:22 PM

NFL teams invite hundreds of guys that they have no intention of signing in for workouts. It is a rare opportunity to develop a first-hand scouting report of a player that your team will more than likely face. A potential big play threat like White is a likely candidate to be scouted so defenses can exploit his weaknesses and keep him from impacting a game. I could never see a guy like Pat White in a Pats jersey. Sign Peppers and draft Pettigrew.

Posted by SteveJ March 20, 09 02:57 AM

Yeah, thats exactly what we want, Tom Brady on the sidelines or better yet, split out wide right. Gimme a break. Where has common sense gone? Maybe vacation with Mike?

Posted by Steve March 20, 09 07:00 AM

Yeah, I want White taken a snap over Brady. Good lord people.

Posted by ryan March 20, 09 10:15 AM

DO NOT HIT THE SUBMIT BUTTON MORE THAN ONCE!

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Mike Reiss, Christopher L. Gasper and the rest of the Globe team provide regular updates –and a behind-the-scenes look– on the daily happenings of the Patriots.

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