The New England Patriots regained a key part of their offense Sunday when wide receiver Julian Edelman came off the physically unable to perform list and participated in practice at Foxborough, Mass.
Edelman, recovering from left foot surgeries in November and May, did conditioning work in full pads. He also caught passes on the side from quarterback Tom Brady, but he did not participate in a team scrimmage.
“It feels good,” Edelman said. “To get out here and get to see the fellas in pads and not get to see them after practice — that’s the fun thing about this time of the year. …
“You’ve got to get your football legs back in shape and you’ve got to have this extra weight on (by wearing the pads). It’s about 7 pounds, so it’s good to get out here and run around with the pads and adjust to catching a ball with the shoulder pads, the helmet, the face mask; going out there and trying to get tired, as tired as possible with the pads on so you can get used to the games and stuff.”
Edelman was glad to work with Brady, who is suspended for the regular season’s first four games due to his involvement in the Deflategate scandal.
“Any time you have one-on-one time with any quarterback, it’s very valuable,” Edelman said. “Today, me and Tom got to throw a few, and that’s always good to kind of see where we’re at, see our timing, have him see my mechanics, me see his mechanics, me catch his ball. It will be good to get out here and do that with multiple guys.”
Edelman, 30, missed the final seven regular-season games last year due to the initial foot surgery. He returned in the postseason and had a 10-catch, 100-yard game in a win over the Kansas City Chiefs and a seven-reception, 53-yard game in an AFC Championship Game loss to the Denver Broncos.
In the regular season, he produced 61 catches for 692 yards and seven touchdowns.
The previous two years, he averaged 98.5 receptions, 1,014 yards and five touchdowns.
A seventh-round draft pick by New England in 2009 out of Kent State, Edelman has 327 career receptions for 3,434 yards and 21 touchdowns in 87 games (46 starts).