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Wes Welker (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

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FOXBORO — 

Since being drafted by the Patriots last month, Jake Bequette has taken a local approach whenever a New Englander asks how his last name is pronounced.

“I say, ‘It’s just like Josh Beckett,’ ” the affable Arkansas native said with a smile Friday during a break in the Patriots’ two-day rookie minicamp at Gillette Stadium.

Bequette recently turned 23, so you can forgive him for not knowing any better. And while he has a few things in common with Beckett — namely, a fondness for golfing, hunting and fishing — it appears (thankfully) that’s where the similarities end.

It doesn’t take long to realize saying and, more importantly, doing the right things matter a great deal to this Bequette.

“I’m just working as hard as I can and I’m just going to try to establish myself,” he said. “For me, it’s exciting. It’s been a lifelong dream to play in the NFL, especially for a great organization like the Patriots. It’s just awesome and exciting. Like I said, I can’t wait to get started.”

Judging by that comment, Bequette had no trouble acing Patriots 101. He and the team are hoping the rest of the transition from the University of Arkansas to the pros will be equally seamless.

The Patriots drafted Bequette in the third round with the 90th overall selection, one acquired from Green Bay in a trade that saw them drop back 28 spots and still get their player. He was the fourth of six straight picks made with the intention of fortifying a defense that ranked both 31st overall and against the pass last season.

Like Chandler Jones, the Patriots’ first overall pick, the 6-foot-4, 264-pound Bequette excelled as a pass-rushing defensive end in college while also playing some outside linebacker. When it comes to a Bill Belichick-coached team, you can’t go wrong with being multi-positional.

“That’s a tremendous point of pride for me,” Bequette said. “Versatility is about helping the team any way you can. That’s a big part of this organization, I’ve been told, and that’s hopefully something I can bring to the table.”

Being able to play two positions is a valued trait. But the one thing the Patriots are banking on is Bequette displaying a knack for pressuring — and taking down — the quarterback.

That’s something he consistently did at Arkansas, finishing his career with 23-1/2 sacks in 48 games, including 10 in 10 games as a senior. He improved his sack total in each of his four seasons.

But you should know better if you expected Bequette to talk about a quick first step, explosiveness, high-end speed, or a relentless motor. No, his top attribute is being a diligent worker.

“That’s something I’m trying to prove starting today, not just to the coaches but to the veterans in the locker room,” he said. “That I’m willing to come in here and work and get better every day and just prove that I’m willing to do the things (needed) to be a part of the team.”

The Bequette family certainly knows all about being part of a team, specifically the one that the entire state of Arkansas passionately follows. Jake’s grandfather (1954-56), father (’80-82) and uncle (’84-87) all played for the Razorbacks before he completed the third generation triple play.

“Well, that was great,” Bequette said. “Playing at Arkansas was another goal of mine from when I was young, and to be able to accomplish that and play at the same place as my father, grandfather and uncle was great.”

Bequette did the family name proud both on and off the field. He was a second-team All-SEC selection as a junior and made the first team as a senior while also being selected as an academic All-American.

Bequette earned a degree in finance in three years and is currently working on his master’s. He has given a lot of thought to attending law school someday.

“My dad is an attorney and I’ve always been interested in law school, so hopefully I can pursue that some time after football or even while playing,” Bequette said. “If I can pursue that, it would be great. But for right now, I’m worried about football 100 percent. I’m lucky and blessed to be a Patriot and I’m going to work hard every day.”

Now, if they can only get that Beckett over at Fenway Park to start thinking and acting that way, it might not be such a lost summer after all.

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Via NESN:

Tom Brady traded in his Kentucky Derby gear for hair gel. Lots and lots of hair gel.

Tom and wife Gisele Bundchen attended the Met Gala on Monday night and while on the red carpet, Brady proved why he won the best hair in the NFL last fall.  Brady rocked what many are calling a “sidehawk,” while Hill-Man Morning Show’s Danielle opted to compare it to a famous hairstyle from a Farrelly brothers movie.
 

It can’t get much worse than last offseason for Patriots fans, who witnessed Tom Terrific rock a mean ponytail:

That ponytail soon turned into an amazing mop of locks, as seen here:

The mop was gone shortly thereafter to make way for a short, clean, yet boring look — that apparently made him cry:

But, as we all know, before there were ponytails, there was Bieber fever:

Finally, Tom’s middle-part/beard combo in 2010 was very metro-caveman:

Also from NESN:

New York Rangers Take Down Capitals in Overtime (Video)

Jose Canseco Joins Worcester Tornadoes, Remains Focused on Twitter Followers

Metta World Peace sits down with Conan O’Brien (video)

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Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh made a critical remark about the New England Patriots in a radio interview on Tuesday, but later backtracked.

Harbaugh told a Baltimore station that New England’s championships “got asterisks now; it’s been stained” while referring to the Spygate scandal of 2007.

There is the quick update of the day.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh clarified comments he made on a local radio station Tuesday in which he said that Super Bowl championships won by the New England Patriots were “stained” and have “asterisks” because of the Spygate scandal in 2007.

Those comments were made on the 98 Rock morning show in response to a question about the New Orleans Saints’ bounty scandal and cheating in the NFL in general.

“In the end, everything is brought before the light of day, when it’s all said and done,” said Harbaugh in response to the question about the Saints. “What happens, even the thing in New England, no matter whether those things had any impact on whether they won their championships or not, they got asterisks now. It’s been stained.

“To me, it’s never worth it. You’ve got to figure out ways to use the rules to your advantage, you’ve got to figure out ways to make the most of everything. We’ve got new work rules here as far as what we can do and what we can’t do with our players, and we’re going to make the most of it. What we’re finding is, ‘Man, maybe we can do some things even better than we did before,’ because these rules make us focus more on some things that we didn’t focus on before. You just have to make them work for you. That’s what success is in the world. You have to find a way to do things better than somebody else. But if you’re cheating, in the end, you’re going to get discredited. It’s not worth it.”

By Tuesday afternoon, Harbaugh released a statement via the Ravens clarifying his comments.

“I answered a question about playing within the rules and referred to the perception that the Super Bowl championships won by the Patriots and Saints have a stain. My reference was to the perception out there that came as a result of the league’s actions,” Harbaugh said .

“I could have been more clear that I was referring to those viewpoints. I totally believe that the Patriot and Saint coaches and players earned those championships. [Patriots coach Bill Belichick] and [Saints coach Sean Payton] both know that.”

Harbaugh also acknowledged that he reached out to both Belichick, who he is friendly with and spent time on the sidelines with before a Johns Hopkins-Maryland men’s lacrosse game last month, and former Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who was on New England’s three Super Bowl-winning teams in 2002, 2004 and 2005, to explain his comments.

Now an analyst for ESPN, Bruschi questioned Harbaugh’s loyalty to Belichick who called Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti back in January 2008, and suggested that he give Harbaugh, then a special teams coach for the Philadelphia Eagles, a look for the team’s coaching vacancy. Harbaugh was ultimately hired to replace Brian Billick.

“There has been some distortion about what I said. The original tweet indicated I pointed the finger at Bill Belichick and mentioned Bill’s name. I did not,” Harbaugh said in the statement. “I have so much respect for Coach Belichick and the job he does and has accomplished in his Hall of Fame career. I called him to remind him of my respect for him. I also reached out to Tedy Bruschi, who rightfully defended those Patriot players and coaches on ESPN, to tell him that I agree with him that the Patriots earned every victory.”

Harbaugh is certainly not the first person in the NFL to reference the Spygate scandal and how that affects the Patriots’ legacy. In September 2007, the Patriots were caught illegally videotaping the New York Jets’ coaching sideline during a game. They were subsequently fined and docked a first-round draft pick.

If nothing else, Harbaugh’s comments are certain to put even more attention on the Ravens’ prime-time Week Three matchup against the Patriots on Sept. 23 at M&T Bank Stadium. There already figured to be plenty of hype heading into the game after the Patriots knocked off the Ravens, 23-20, in the AFC championship game in January.

The two organizations have been extremely respectful and complimentary of one another over the years. In the days before the AFC championship game, Harbaugh called Belichick “the greatest coach in our league right now” and the Patriots coach returned the favor by expressing his admiration for the job that Harbaugh has done, calling him a “great guy [who] does a good job with his football team.”

Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Bisciotti also have been highly complimentary of each other. However, the relationship between the two organizations will certainly be tested as a member of the Ravens’ coaching staff has now referenced — either directly or indirectly — the Spygate scandal for the second time in a little more than four months.

A couple of days after the bitter loss in the AFC title game in which wide receiver Lee Evans couldn’t hold onto a potential game-winning Joe Flacco touchdown pass and then Billy Cundiff missed an 32-yard field goal that likely would have forced overtime, Ravens kicking consultant Randy Brown went on a Philadelphia radio show and was asked about the scoreboard at Gillette Stadium displaying the wrong down on the final couple of plays of the Ravens’ last drive. The sideline confusion may have factored in Cundiff getting on the field late and rushing the kick.

Asked if the Patriots did it on purpose, Brown said, “I don’t think you can rule anything out in New England, can you?”

Harbaugh later dismissed Brown’s comments, saying “any suggestion that the wrong down information was a deliberate effort to affect the outcome of the game is nonsense.”

This time, Harbaugh was forced to defend his own comments after going on the radio show Tuesday morning to promote the upcoming ALS charity run for former Raven and current senior advisor to player developmentO.J. Brigance.

After Harbaugh made his controversial comments, he was asked if he ever felt an opposing team knew what play the Ravens were going to run ahead of time.

“Yeah, I have, but if I say when, it’s going to be like Pro Football Talk is going to blow up and go crazy and I’m going to get accused of accusing somebody of something,” Harbaugh said.

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Sun staff writer Matt Vensel contributed to this article

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Gotta run!.

Not much else going on in the NFL world today.

Chandler Jones, a Union-Endicott graduate and former Syracuse University lineman, was chosen by the New England Patriots with the 21st pick in the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday night.

The Patriots, who held the 27th pick, moved up by trading with the Cincinnati Bengals for the 21st pick.

Jones, who left Syracuse with a year of eligibility remaining, was a first-team All-Big East selection despite missing five games last year with a knee injury.

He showed well enough at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis and at his subsequent Pro Day at SU to move him into the first-round conversation before the draft.

He said recently that getting picked in the first round wasn’t his primary goal.

“To my mom, very important,” he said. “To me, I don’t care. I just want to play football again. I left school thinking I could go as late as the third round. The opportunity to play professional football is great. I just want to go play football; my goal is to be an impact player as a rookie.”

This story will be updated throughout the night. Check back later for more coverage and photos of Jones’ big night.

That’s all for today.

AGAWAM – The Boy Scouts have produced future leaders in this country for decades. Among those the organization can claim is a boy who grew up in Florida and later became a leader on the gridiron, Patriots captain and defensive lineman Vince Wilfork.

Wilfork was the keynote speaker on Wednesday night as the Western Massachusetts Council of the Boy Scouts of America convened for their annual Distinguished Citizen Award gala at Chez Josef. Tuesday’s dinner is the largest fundraising event for the organization.

Wilfork said his experience as a Scout was an important one and helped develop skills he uses today while anchoring the New England Patriots’ defensive line.

“Being a Scout is a hands-on thing,” Wilfork said. “They teach you to become an adult. It was definitely a fun time in my life. I think it’ll make these guys better men as they grow up.”

Thursday night, players talented enough to be selected in the first round will hear their names called by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. The 2012 draft class is reportedly stocked with a great deal of defensive talent, which bodes well for the Patriots, who have perceived holes to fill on that side of the ball.

As a captain and veteran heading into his ninth NFL season, Wilfork has some words of advice for possible future Patriots.

“Each one of those young men needs to understand that that is a life-changing moment,” Wilfork said of the draft. “Whoever gets a chance to be a part of this league should know that it’s a privilege.”

Wilfork was selected 21st overall in the 2004 NFL draft. On that April afternoon, he became the fifth member from perennial collegiate powerhouse Miami to be drafted in the first round.

Wilfork’s selection saw one of his longest-standing childhood dreams fulfilled. From an early age, the now-hulking lineman was hooked on the sport.

“I remember growing up, 4 years old and telling my father that this is what I wanted to do,” he said. “And now 30 years later, and nine years into the league, it’s an amazing feeling. It was a dream I had as a youngster, and my dream came true.”

Wednesday night’s Distinguished Citizen Award honoree was AAA of the Pioneer Valley President and CEO, Chris Mensing.

“It’s a wonderful honor,” Mensing said. “I just feel very blessed to be honored and thought of in this way.”

Mensing, though not a Scout growing up, equated the skills he attained and experienced he face through youth sports to the organization.

The Western Mass. Council, BSA, serves Hampden, Hampshire, Franklin and Berkshire counties. Some 7,200 youth participated in the Boy Scouts in Western Massachusetts in 2011.

Not much else going on in the NFL world today.

The Patriots find themselves on somewhat unfamiliar ground heading into the 2012 draft, having just six picks to work with to improve their team for next year.

Four of New England’s six selections are in the first two rounds however, starting with number 27, after New England got extra picks from New Orleans and Oakland last year for moving down.

Feel free to leave your comments below.