00:00Robert Spillane, how are you?
00:01I'm good, thanks for having me on.
00:03How's camp been to this point?
00:05Camp's the best part of the year.
00:06You get to learn the guys next to you,
00:09see where things are headed, and just get better every day.
00:12What was that PR person telling you on the way over?
00:14Not to say to us and watch out for this guy, that guy?
00:17Not at all.
00:18Okay, good.
00:21You got some heavy stuff on it.
00:23You trying to lose some pounds,
00:26or is that just the way you practice all the time?
00:28I like to switch it up.
00:31Well, I was telling these guys before
00:34that a pool was a part of some of your off-season.
00:39Today's a great day for a pool,
00:41but how did you involve the pool in falling into a pool
00:44to prepare yourself for being out there on the field?
00:47I like to find ways that work for me.
00:50I've spent years studying my body,
00:53knowing what I need to do,
00:54knowing what I want my body positioning
00:57to look like,
00:58so that's just one of the ways
00:59that I work on my body positioning.
01:01So that's like falling in at certain angles?
01:03Is that how you do it?
01:05There's a lot of different exercises
01:06that I can do in the pool.
01:08Super explosive, off-angle landings,
01:11repositioning my body the way I want it to be.
01:15Do you have the green dot on?
01:17Are you calling most of the plays?
01:19I know we haven't got games yet,
01:20but are you going to be one of the green dots?
01:21We're going to wait until the games happen to decide that.
01:24Okay.
01:26How's it out there working with some of these guys?
01:28You know, it's a brand-new front for a lot of you guys.
01:30Working with Landry out there
01:32and guys like King on White on the other side.
01:34Yeah, it's important to learn,
01:35especially the guys in front of you
01:37and how they like to play,
01:38different blocking schemes,
01:40and I'm proud of those guys.
01:41They've come out here to work every single day,
01:44looking to get 1% better every day,
01:45so I'm proud of.
01:47I think we're really trending in the right direction.
01:49What's your relationship with Mike Rabel?
01:52He's obviously a big fan of yours.
01:53You guys have a history together,
01:55but how is it to have a head coach
01:56that knows what it is for you on a daily basis
02:00because he did it himself?
02:01Yeah, I'm a player.
02:02He's the head coach.
02:04He has so much knowledge and understanding in this game,
02:07and he knows how to win,
02:09so I put my trust in him,
02:11I put my faith in him,
02:12and I know good things are going to happen.
02:14I thought one of the coolest things
02:15when you first signed here
02:16and they brought you guys in as free agents,
02:19you know, you see a lot of the video
02:20of inside the locker room and your daughter
02:22when you got number 14
02:23and Mike's in there playing with your kids.
02:25How much does that help you guys as players
02:27to have the ability to bring your family around
02:29and they feel included in everything?
02:31Yeah, to me, my family is everything.
02:33My wife, my two daughters,
02:35my mom and dad, her mom and dad,
02:37my siblings, her siblings,
02:38and Mike Rabel really understands that,
02:42Coach Rabel, I'm sorry about that,
02:43really understands what is important to us as players,
02:46and he's willing to do whatever to make us happy.
02:48How's the experience been overall
02:50since you've signed here,
02:51you know, being in this area,
02:53being a patriot, being in this building every day?
02:55I love it.
02:55Being on a new team,
02:57it gives me a chance to reestablish myself every day,
03:00so I try to come in here
03:01with the best positive attitude
03:02and that yearning to get better every day.
03:05Do you feel like a foundational piece now,
03:07you know, being a part of that first free agent class
03:10staying with Mike Rabel sort of putting his program in here?
03:12Of course, and I've always looked at myself
03:14as a foundational piece wherever I've been,
03:17whether it's an undrafted rookie or an eight-year vet.
03:21You're part of a defense that has a lot of guys,
03:23yourself included, that can hit
03:26and can really get after it
03:28and play a physical, aggressive style of defense.
03:30Are you starting to see that take shape so far in this camp?
03:33Yeah, we got a long way to go,
03:34but we're taking it one step at a time.
03:39We got a lot of hungry people on the defense
03:40and we just got to keep getting better every day.
03:43Do you like the violence angle they're trying to preach?
03:46Of course, football is one with violence,
03:49with communication, with pad level,
03:51with understanding at where your people are
03:53and we're just going to keep working on that every day.
03:56What young player so far has surprised you the most
03:58early on in camp?
03:59You know, I love watching Drake May work.
04:04I love watching him study.
04:06He's going on his second year
04:08and we're excited to see a big jump from him.
04:11All right, Robert, we appreciate the time
04:13and hopefully we'll talk to you again sometime soon.
04:15Thanks for having me on.
04:16Have a good one.
04:17Thanks, Robert.
04:17Appreciate it.
04:17Robert Splane, Patriots linebacker,
04:19who I think is a perfect guy for Mike Vrabel.
04:25Mike Vrabel loves him.
04:26Huge fan of him.
04:27He's caught his eye a number of years ago
04:30and the first time Mike Vrabel saw that player,
04:34he's only improved.
