FOXBOROUGH — The New England Patriots took the field at Gillette Stadium with the familiar arena anthem of Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” blaring through the arena.
But for the first time in well over two decades, the Patriots made a change to their pregame introductions ahead of Sunday’s win over the Cleveland Browns — with players now running to the middle of the field.
In addition, offensive starters were introduced individually, with Drake Maye, Kayshon Boutte, Stefon Diggs, and Will Campbell drawing plenty of cheers from a packed crowd in Foxborough.
The Patriots have been introduced as a team during introductions since the 2001 NFL season, with Bill Belichick and New England famously opting to be introduced as one unit ahead of their victory over the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI.