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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Bledsoe Expects Renewal New Coach, Receiver May Ease Return To Form

Associated Press

Drew Bledsoe has a new position coach and a new deep receiving threat. Now he just wants to be a new - and better - quarterback after his worst season as a pro.

“This is an important year for me and an important year for the team,” Bledsoe said Friday. “I’m coming off a bad season.”

The New England Patriots made Bledsoe the top choice in the 1993 draft, and he reached the Pro Bowl the next season. But he plummeted last year when he separated his left shoulder in the third game and ended tied for the AFC’s lowest quarterback ranking.

During the off-season, the Patriots moved Chris Palmer from wide receivers coach to quarterbacks coach. In the past three years, offensive coordinator Ray Perkins worked with the quarterbacks.

This week, the team signed a four-year contract with free agent Shawn Jefferson, who had 91 catches for San Diego the past two seasons.

That should relieve some of the double and triple coverage on tight end Ben Coates, the Patriots’ most effective receiver, and improve the short-passing game with running backs Dave Meggett and Curtis Martin.

But Bledsoe knows he has to get the ball to Jefferson.

“He’s a very fast guy who’s going to demand some respect from people’s secondaries” on deep passes, Bledsoe said in a conference call. “In order for them to respect it, we’re going to have to hit him with it and I’m going to have to make sure I’m accurate.”

There were plenty of times in which that wasn’t the case last season.

Bledsoe said he needs to focus on fundamentals, such as regaining the proper balance when he throws and not dropping his arm too low when he brings it back to pass.

“If I can correct those two things, I think that will go a long way as far as getting me back to where I was when I got here,” he said.

He’s already begun working with Palmer on some basic problems.

“I feel I’ve lost track of a few fundamentals over the course of these three years,” Bledsoe said. “I have gotten a little lazy with my throwing motion.”

The 6-foot-5 Bledsoe also had a lot of passes tipped at the line or knocked down. He plans to try the shotgun formation in an effort to eliminate that problem.

Although he said he learned a lot from Perkins, “it will be beneficial for me to have a quarterback coach on a daily basis.”

He said he has no pain in his left shoulder and has lifted weights for two months.

With a new receiver, a new coach and improved health, Bledsoe still has to do his part to come back from last year’s disappointing performance.

“It’s important for me to rebound from that,” he said, “to prove that last year was the exception and not the rule.”