Pure Patriot
Brown considered Saints before rejoining champs
Posted: Tuesday May 24, 2005 8:44PM; Updated: Tuesday May 24, 2005


BOSTON (AP) -- Free agent receiver Troy Brown was comparing offers from the Patriots and Saints when his 6-year-old son, Sir'mon, weighed in.

"He just said, 'I want you to play for the Patriots. No, Daddy. I don't want you to go anywhere. I want you to play for the Patriots,"' Brown said Tuesday after reporting to New England. "When you hear your 6-year-old son say something like that, you think about it a little bit and how much would it affect him. That made it a little bit easier for me to make up my mind."

Brown, 33, played 12 seasons for the Patriots before they released him in March to save almost $5 million against the salary cap. But he didn't make the rounds with other teams, and his locker at Gillette Stadium remained intact.

Brown said Tuesday that the New Orleans Saints offered him more money and a chance to be the No. 3 receiver. They were also optimistic that they would return to the playoffs after missing them five consecutive years.

But the three-time Super Bowl champions had that beat -- by far.

"That is the only thing that matters to me at the end of the year: How many wins did we have in the win column, and who is wearing the big ring in June?" Brown said. "You never get tired of the celebrations. I have that feeling and I want to try to get it one more time."

Terms of Brown's agreement, which was reached on Monday, were not disclosed. But his sons didn't care.

"The other one, he was on the bandwagon, too," Brown said. "He will get mad at me if I leave him out. His name is SaanJay, so put his name in there, too, just in case they read it."

Brown caught 101 passes in 2001 to earn his only Pro Bowl selection. His numbers have gone down each year since, with just 17 catches in limited playing time last season, but he found other ways to contribute to New England's third title in four years.

With the Patriots secondary ravaged by injuries, Brown filled in as an extra defensive back and had three interceptions and 17 tackles.

Asked what he'll be playing this year, Brown said, "Whatever."

"Wherever they put me at, that is what I'm going to do. That's the way I've always been and that is the way I continue to be," he said, adding that he wore the offense's white jersey in practice on Tuesday. "Who knows what tomorrow holds."

Brown also had 17 catches for 184 yards on offense and 12 punt returns for an average of 6.9 yards. In his career, Brown has 475 catches for 5,516 yards and 25 touchdowns -- all for the Patriots, who picked him in the eighth round of the 1993 draft out of Marshall.

"I enjoy playing the game. I enjoy winning," he said. "And I knew that part of my best chance at winning was to stay here, too.

"When you go out and play football, it doesn't matter if you are on offense, defense, special teams or whatever, you just want to be on the field being a part of the game. It would be a little tough for me to sit back and watch from the sidelines."