Routines vary for those enjoying a bye weekend while eight other worthy teams slug it out.
Bill Belichick will watch today's Colts-Broncos game in his Gillette Stadium office (you thought he'd be at the Opera House for "The Lion King"?). He's already junked his Chargers file. The Patriots' opponent next Sunday is going to be either the Jets or the Colts if they win today. Another file will be tossed sometime around 4 p.m. this afternoon.
The coach and his staff will be at the stadium. The players will be scattered throughout the region, some watching football, others merely waiting for someone to tell them whom they're playing next weekend.
"I'll definitely be watching," said Tom Brady. "I'm still trying to figure out what the other teams are doing and what's going on. It's not the same as watching when you are a fan. When I watched USC and Oklahoma, I was very much a fan. But in these games, I'm trying to study what they're doing. It's definitely different. It's not as much fun."
Think of it this way. Most of us enjoy movies and books. But the enjoyment is tempered if you are assigned to write a movie review or book critique after you've finished. It'll be a similar experience for Brady and the rest of the Patriots who watch the Colts on TV today.
"As much as I do enjoy watching the football part, it's still tempered by the fact that we're trying to get ready to play a football game," said the quarterback. "When the offense is on the field, I'm more of a fan. When the defense is on the field I'll say, `Oh, that play wasn't that good,' or `We won't let that happen.' "
Veteran linebacker Willie McGinest said, "We'll watch the games and get some information from them. We're looking for certain things, certain keys. But you don't play everybody the same, so some of these teams will play us different than what we'll see on TV."
Christian Fauria, Tedy Bruschi, and Joe Andruzzi each have three children. Their TV game days are different from those of their bachelor teammates. Even during the playoffs.
Bruschi plans to be in bed, rolling around with his two oldest sons.
"My kids get fired up when we watch football,' he said. "We're all wrestling in bed and during timeouts we'll be tackling each other.
