Matthew Slater is one of the older guys in a locker room that has undergone change over the past couple seasons.
He’s seen it all, from Pro Bowl appearances to Super Bowl titles. The organization has been in a bit of a rebuild over the past couple of seasons, and they’ll be looking to get back to the playoffs after missing the 2022 season.
Former Patriots running back James White was a teammate of Slater’s from 2014-2021, and he got to see Slater’s impact on the organization firsthand. He appeared on the “Pats Interference Football Podcast” earlier in the week and broke down just how much the special teamer has meant to the club, as transcribed by NESN.com’s Zack Cox.
“I thought this would be the year for him, but I do that every single year wondering if this is going to be the last one for him,” said White. “But I think it’s very important to keep guys like him and Dev (Devin McCourty) in that locker room, especially with a lot of younger guys coming into that building. They keep the culture that’s been there for so, so long and make sure those guys stay on the straight and narrow and are willing to buy into the process.
“Because these young guys, they’re different. The social media era, it’s a lot different than six, seven years ago. Guys come in expecting a lot when they walk into that door, but you’ve got to work for everything that you get when you come in that building.”
It remains to be seen what this year’s version of the Patriots will look like. The roster could look a bit different with many free-agent decisions to be made.
Nevertheless, Slater will remain a constant, just as he has for the last decade-plus.
