FOXBOROUGH — Javon Baker has buckets of self-confidence and isn’t afraid to speak his mind.
In his introductory press conference, the rookie wideout from UCF said “I make people in wheelchairs stand up,” and he’s since claimed there aren’t 10 receivers better than him in an Instagram video. He’s got a knack for making headlines with his words.
Before Saturday’s rookie minicamp at Gillette Stadium, Patriots coach Jerod Mayo was asked how he feels about Baker’s comments since being drafted.
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“Honestly, like for me, I want these guys to have a personality, I want them to feel free to talk about certain things,” Mayo said. “Look, we’ll have rules of what to talk about. But now, once he puts it out there, he has to show it every day out here on the football field. If not, he’s just a talker and you start to lose the respect of the locker room and things like that. So, he said it, he put that out there, and now you have to show us.”
The Patriots had press conferences with six of their draft picks following Saturday’s session, but Baker and quarterback Joe Milton III were the two that didn’t speak. After being drafted, Baker said that he was eager to prove himself in New England.
“Honestly, there’s going to always be a chip on my shoulder no matter what,” Baker said. “I’m self-driven. I know how it feels to be behind somebody. I know how it feels to be at the bottom of the depth chart. I’m always going to have a chip on my shoulder, regardless.”
