Tag: NATE EBNER
Ebner: ‘Matt(Slater) was among the most consistent people I’ve ever met’
Patriots special teams standout Matthew Slater has had an outstanding career, possibly even a Hall of Fame career.
In 12 seasons, all with the Patriots, Slater has won three Super Bowls and been to the Pro Bowl eight times(the most Pro Bowls for a special teams player). He has been consistent and made a lot of plays on special teams for New England. It’s the little things that win championships, and Slater has done those little things for the Patriots.
Last season, Slater, 34, who made the Pro Bowl, did two things that he has never done before. Slater scored his first touchdown, and he blocked the first punt of his career.
Nate Ebner, who starred on special teams in New England and followed former New England special teams coach and current Giants head coach Joe Judge to New York, knows first hand the greatness of Slater.
“I have nothing but amazing things to say about Matthew Slater,” Ebner recently said on a conference call with the New York media. “He’s one of the highest character people I’ve ever met in my life, and he’s a great, great football player to boot. I learned a lot from Matt coming in as a rookie. He was in his third or fourth year and already was a Pro Bowler. I just watched him work on a day to day basis, and kind of what I’ve spoken to throughout this phone call, just coming to work with a selfless attitude to do the work, to do it to the best of your ability, and whatever is asked of you, do it with a selflessness that puts the team’s priorities above your own. That’s what Matt did forever.
“He was extremely consistent, and that consistency, over time, really speaks to who you are as a person,” Ebner continued. “Matt was among the most consistent people I’ve ever met. I could go on and on about the things that I’ve learned and how we’ve grown together. Matt, as a person, I could literally go on and on about that.”
Slater is the son of Hall of Fame offensive tackle Jackie Slater, and if Slater can continue to play at a high level, maybe he will join his father in Canton one day. However, it won’t be easy. Steve Tasker, who was a great special teams player, is still not in, but he was a semifinalist for the Hall in 2020, so he might eventually get in. Tasker getting in could bode well for Slater down the line. All that being said, even if Slater does not make the Hall, he can one day walk away from the game, knowing that he had a great career.
Patriots’ Nate Ebner: ‘Rugby is in my blood’
Nate Ebner has won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots, not only does Ebner love football, but he also loves the game of Rugby. Ebner discussed his love of rugby with Go4it’s Paul Gant. “Man, I’ll never be done with rugby; rugby is in my blood,” said Ebner. “I’ll find my way back there even if I’m 45 years old playing in an old boys league somewhere in Ohio. It does not matter.”
Ebner was a part of the U.S. national rugby team, and represented the United States in the 2016 Rio Olympics. “Some guys like to go play pickup basketball in the off-season, play in leagues. I go play touch Rugby games that’s just my thing.”
To hear more of Nate Ebner listen at link below:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/pgant/2017/02/25/patriots-nate-ebner-the-quads-kevin-savage
Interview comes in at 45:32
Patriots’ Nate Ebner: “We just kind of wore them(Falcons) down”
After being down 28-3 in the third quarter of Super Bowl 51, the Patriots stormed back and took the game to overtime. At that point, Patriots’ safety Nate Ebner felt New England had the Falcons right where they wanted them. Ebner, in an interview with Go4it host Paul Gant, felt the Patriots were in a good shape once they received the ball first in overtime:
“I mean when we won the toss, with the momentum that we had, I think a lot of us would say there was no doubt we were going to go down and score,” said Ebner. “We were prepared to fight for however long it took. Obviously the offense took care of business, and the way they started moving the ball we just kind of wore them down, and it was just too much for them to handle.”
To hear the whole interview go to this link:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/pgant/2017/02/25/patriots-nate-ebner-the-quads-kevin-savage
Interview comes in at 45:26
