Urban Meyer recalls being ‘blown away’ by Tom Brady the practice player

When new Jaguars coach Urban Meyer formally brings Trevor Lawrence aboard as the NFL draft’s top overall pick, chances are the coveted Clemson quarterback will hear the same anecdote Meyer recently shared with veteran NFL scribe Peter King.

In his popular Football Morning in America notes column for NBCSports.com, King conveyed Meyer’s anecdote about watching how current Bucs quarterback Tom Brady went about his business during a seemingly nondescript June minicamp late in his Patriots tenure.

“They just got done with a very long, seven/eight weeks in the offseason,” Meyer recalled. “You’re talking about the greatest quarterback of all time. Mike Vrabel was there. Tedy Bruschi was there. I was blown away.

“The last day of minicamp, they’re in shorts, helmets, and they’re doing a two-minute drill. And Tom Brady is treating it like it’s the Super Bowl. He goes down and he scores with two seconds left to win that scrimmage. Ran around the field like a child — that’s how competitive he is.

“I went back immediately to my quarterbacks and shared with them that I just watched the greatest of all time, and the way you’re supposed to practice, the way you’re supposed to provide energy to the rest of your team and the way you lead your team.”

King’s column also noted Jimmy Johnson and Bill Belichick remain two of Meyer’s biggest NFL mentors. Meyer, who made several visits to the Patriots camp in recent years, indicated his biggest takeaway from those trips is the strength of the culture established by Belichick.

“Culture survives,” said Meyer, embarking on his first NFL gig after winning 85 percent of his games (187-32) and three national titles in college. “Culture survives injuries to players, transitions to players, transition of staff. Coach Belichick’s the best I’ve ever witnessed at it. There’s a Patriot way and a Patriot culture there.”

When King noted that the “quarterback helped” in New England, Meyer responded, “Part of that culture.”

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