"Laurence Maroney always has been able to catch a football. As a standout running back at the University of Minnesota, he was a major part of the passing game.

The reality, however, changed in the NFL.

The enormity of the situation, the star quarterback, the bright lights shining on the Patriots [team stats] - it overwhelmed him.

"I mean, this is Tom Brady [stats], this is the Patriots you're playing for," Maroney said yesterday. "I could be at home and catch many things and get here, and it's like I never caught before in my life. I'd just be nervous. Not this year. I'm just out there relaxed. Catching is coming natural for me again."

Bill Belichick agrees.

The coach has gone out of his way to praise Maroney's improvement, saying, "Of course, we know he can run the ball. He's worked very hard in the passing game, and the work has shown up on the field."

There is a reason.

After an injury-plagued 2008 in which he recorded just 93 rushing yards and zero catches in three games, Maroney went off to work on the lonely high school fields of St. Louis during the offseason.

One of his best friends is Lavel May, the former quarterback at Normandy (Mo.) High. The two spent all summer working out with Maroney's trainer, as Maroney prepared for the NFL season and May got ready to start for the Midwest Chargers of the semi-pro Great Midwest Football League.

When the conditioning drills stopped, the passing drills began. As May explained by phone from his St. Louis home, Maroney issued clear instructions.

"He wanted me to throw it as hard as I can. Because Tom Brady throws real hard. And he needs good enough hands to catch Tom Brady's ball," May said. "So he tried to get used to it like how Tom Brady throws."

Children from the neighborhood gathered to watch."