At 36 years old, New England Patriots wide receiver Reggie Wayne is hardly a rookie.
However, he has much to learn in order to get up to speed with the Patriots’ playbook. Wayne described his experience thus far in New England, noting he feels like a rookie:
“Like a rookie,” Wayne said, per the Boston Herald. “They’re throwing a lot at me right now. I’m not getting very much sleep. I feel like a rookie all over again.”
The veteran has been hard at work with his head buried in the offensive playbook, which features an Erhardt-Perkins scheme that requires plenty of work from the receivers. The Patriots’ attack reportedly features wide receivers making split decisions based on how their opposing defenses are aligned. This is something that Chad Johnson (Ochocinco) struggled with, as have many others.
Wayne however, is one of the best in the business and is very versatile.
The veteran still has to make the final 53-man roster, which is probably why he is missing sleep to nail down that playbook. However, Wayne’s chances of keeping a roster spot are heightened due to Julian Edelman possibly missing the season opener and Brandon LaFell’s lingering foot injury.
In what could be his last season to play in the NFL, Wayne couldn’t have landed with a more successful team that has one of the better chances of making it to another championship game.