FOXBORO -- Patriots punter Ken Walter was once a ball boy for the Cleveland Browns. Yesterday, the franchise probably regretted that it whet his appetite for the game.
Walter dropped four punts inside the Cleveland 20 yesterday, quietly helping a Patriots defense that allowed the Browns' offense to cross midfield once all afternoon.
Only one of Walter's five punts was returned (that one went for -1 as Chris Akins made a great play in coverage). His other punts were downed at the 7, 14, 14 and 1-yard lines. He also had a touchback that barely grazed the end line, otherwise he'd have had all five inside the Cleveland 20. It was a standout performance -- in high winds -- from a guy who's been under scrutiny for inconsistency.
"In those plus-50 (punting from inside your opponent's territory), I can't baby it," Walter said. "I have to rip into it, think I'll hit a touchback. The chances are, being a lefty, it will spin backwards when it's wet. But you're at the mercy of the wind. It was gusty. At times it was calm and then you'd get a big gust. Just sitting on the sidelines I was hoping we didn't get the big gust because it moves the ball."
"That has been a real strength of Kenny's," said head coach Bill Belichick. "He's been a good inside-the-20 punter. He hangs it up there high and -- on a soft field -- you're not looking for a lot of big bounces. It was a nice job by Kenny getting the ball up high and a nice job by the coverage."
Walter -- along with several Patriots -- was dissatisfied with the field conditions at Gillette yesterday.
"Look at the ground," he said. "It's terrible. It's muddy, it's hard to get traction and if you slip two inches, it brings the ball back on your shins and you either pop it up or have it go off the side of your foot."
Kenyatta Jones released by team
The Kenyatta Jones Era ended quietly in Foxboro yesterday. The Patriots released the third-year tackle. Not coincidentally, Jones was charged last week with scalding his "administrative assistant" by throwing a large cup of water on him while he used the toilet.
Belichick said the release came because the team "didn't think we could activate him this year and therefore he wouldn't be playing at all." Jones, Belichick said, "wanted to play this year and he will have the opportunity to do that now."
Jones' attorney, Joe Cataldo , said this week that there wasn't a romantic link between Jones and his assistant, Mark Paul .
A happy mistake
Cornerback Ty Law admitted that he wasn't sure exactly what coverage the Pats were supposed to be in when he made his game-clinching interception with under a minute to go.
"It was either going to be one of two coverages," he said. "I won't get in too much trouble because I made the interception. I just covered the closest man to me. (Browns wide receiver) Kevin Johnson was over there so I assumed he was my man and I took him."
Revising history
Belichick's messy exit from Cleveland has been well-documented. The fans and the media there didn't like him by the time he was fired following the 1995 season. But this week, Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist Tony Grossi had an interesting column that read, in part, "Time has shone a different light on Belichick's five years in Cleveland, which coincided with the demise of the Art Modell franchise.
"A large chunk of his football staff in Cleveland has gone on to better things, demonstrating Belichick's foresight.
"Among his inner circle in Cleveland were: Ozzie Newsome , vice president and general manager of the Baltimore Ravens; Phil Savage , Ravens' director of player personnel; Mike Tannenbaum , Jets director of player personnel; and (Scott ) Pioli .
"Assistant coaches on his staff included: Nick Saban and Kirk Ferentz , two of the most desirable head coaches in the college ranks; Scott O'Brien , the best special teams coach in the NFL, now with Carolina; and three others who presently hold NFL defensive coordinator positions.
"As for his well-documented problems in Cleveland, Belichick repeatedly has said he learned from the experience and became a better coach 'I was focused on football and what happened between the lines,' Belichick said in February. 'I probably could have allocated a little more time to some of the things that go on outside the lines. It's not all about Xs and Os.' "
Extra points
Joe Andruzzi and Tom Ashworth were called for chop blocks twice yesterday (a chop block is when one blocker engages a defensive player and then another blocker hits the player in the legs). The penalty is a 15-yarder. Andruzzi didn't know what to make of either call . . . There seemed to be no lasting injuries from yesterday. Law, tight end Christian Fauria and Andruzzi all left and returned . . . Mike Cloud was inactive yesterday . . . Tom Brady hasn't thrown an interception in 132 attempts. His previous best is 162 at the start of his career. The team record is held by Drew Bledsoe (179). Bill Belichick nudged over the .500 mark for his career (71-70 including playoff games).
