Wes Welker said he feels more relaxed with the Denver Broncos. Unlike with the New England Patriots, Welker feels like he can be himself in the Mile-High City. He also admitted that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady felt upset when the team didn't re-sign him, Yahoo! Sports reports.
"I feel like I can be myself a little more for sure," Welker told Yahoo! Sports on Sunday.
It's a contrast to the strict, business-only culture of New England. Patriots coach Bill Belichick preferred his players to be seen and not heard. Welker, one of the more comedic NFL players, was once benched by Belichick for the first series of a 2010 playoff game for poking fun at New York Jets coach Rex Ryan in a media session.
There aren't the same interview rules to follow in Denver. In fact, Welker said he wasn't given any guidelines to follow with the media.
"Here? No," he said when asked about it. "... All they told me was, 'Just be yourself.'"
While Welker is free to have more of a personality with the media, he feels motivated to prove New England made a mistake by not signing him to a new contract. He also has the burden of proving he wasn't just a product of New England's system.
"Wherever you can pull any sort of motivation that you need to use to go out there and play the way you need to play, I say use it," Welker said. "So whatever it is, then yeah, I'll definitely pull from wherever I can."
Welker also admitted that Brady, who had restructured his contract to create more cap room, was angered to have his favorite target and close friend leave.
"You know, after it happened, obviously we talked and everything like that," Welker said. "He was upset about it, and part of me was a little upset about it too. But things happen for a reason, and I'm excited about the opportunities here and the type of team we have and things that we can do."
The Patriots let Welker hit the market in March after signing former St. Louis Ram receiver Danny Amendola. Welker signed a two-year, $12 million deal with the Denver Broncos shortly thereafter.
Welker faces his former team on Nov. 24, when the Denver Broncos visit Gillette Stadium.
ESPN analyst Herm Edwards discusses Welker's comments:
