‘Hey, rookie…:'

Vets offer advice on how to survive training camp

NFL. For a rookie, NFL training camp is like being thrown into the deep end of the pool and being told, “Swim.” If you’re smart, you spend time seeking out the veterans who will let you know how to go from doing the dog paddle to making it to the end of the pool and back without drowning.

Rodney Harrison is going through the early stages of his 14th training camp, and he said he has the same day-to-day approach he had as a rookie.

“I’m a fifth-round draft pick out of Western Illinois,” he said, “so I have to come in and play hard, play consistent and just do the right things and learn my job, do what I have to do and just keep going.”

As for rookies, he had some simple advice: “Don’t try to shine too early. Just take it day by day. Don’t burn yourself out. Learn as much as you possibly can. Get in the playbook. Get plenty of rest. And get yourself ready to go, because day-to-day, it’s a challenge. It’s up and down. Don’t get too high, don’t get too low.”

Laurence Maroney, in his second training camp, can offer some practical advice. As part of the rookie hazing ritual, he had his eyebrows shaved off last summer instead of his dreadlocks. No one is sure if first-round pick Brandon Meriweather should be worried about his ’brows (he’s also still sporting the dreads), but Maroney let out a big grin when asked if he had any words of wisdom.

“Wooo hoooo,” he said. “Man, just be prepared, because it’ll be a tough one. It was fun for me last year, but it will be a rough one because it’s your first camp, and you’re not used to it and you won’t know what to expect. So it’ll be a little tough and a little hard, but you just have to fight through it.”

Defensive lineman Ty Warren is sweating through his fifth training camp. He leaves the advice to the coaching staff, preferring instead to let his play do the talking for him.

“I think [Head Coach] Bill [Belichick] and the coaching staff do a good job telling the guys what to expect,” Warren said. “Most of the players, you might have a couple of vocal guys. Guys like myself and some others, you just try to go out there and lead by example, and they see it that way.”