FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- When Julian Edelman was named MVP of Super Bowl LIII, he became the seventh wide receiver to break through and earn that honor on football's largest stage.
Former Patriot Deion Branch is also part of that group, having erupted for 11 catches and 113 yards in New England's 24-21 victory against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX. Branch, it turns out, was also on the Patriots practice field as a volunteer assistant coach this month, which gave him an up-close view of Edelman. It looked different from what Branch remembers from his final three seasons with the Patriots (2010 to 2012).