>> Announcer: From Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. It's theCUBE, covering VTUG Winter Warmer 2018, presented by SiliconANGLE. >> I'm Stu Miniman, and this theCUBE's coverage of VTUG Winter Warmer 2018, in addition to being an Analyst, and the host of this program, I've also been a long-time Patriot's season ticket holder. Real excited to welcome to our program, Logan Mankins, number 70. Thanks so much for joining us. >> Thanks for having me. >> Yeah so it's interesting. At this show we're talking tech, and a bunch of the IT Admins, they're people that you'd consider in the trenches. You, you know spend a lot of time in there. I wonder, a couple of your guys like Tedy Bruschi, Ty Law, Lawyer Milloy's here today, making interceptions and things like that, sometimes get a little bit more coverage out there, and they're a little bit more well known. Do you ever feel that you were faceless, you know, paying for the Pats? >> No, those guys, they made all the plays, they got all the recognition but, the linemen, we always knew that without us the offense couldn't go, the team couldn't go so... And most linemen, they don't want to be the face out there anyway. Me personally, I'd rather not be known, but it comes with the job. >> Yeah well, seven-time Pro Bowler. As a matter of fact, I was looking back, and there was this great video from Bill Belichick, and he's like, "There's tough players in the NFL, "but when I think of Logan Mankins, "he's super tough out there." When you look at the game now, Rob Gronkowski took a massive hit in the AFC Championship game. How does toughness and injuries, how did you think about that? Did you think about that when you were playing, versus now being out of the game? >> When I was playing no, you don't really think about it, but fortunately for me, I didn't have hits like that to the head, those big concussion-type hits. The stuff I always played with was just body stuff, and there's always a difference between being hurt and injured. If you're hurt you can still play, and if the injury's not too bad you can still play so, it was just a fine line of figuring out what you could do and what you couldn't. >> Patriots have had a phenomenal run. I mean you played for a great team. Bill Belichick, Tom Brady throughout them all, give us a little perspective of somebody that played for the team for awhile. How did you work through the changes, but yet there were some consistency around the core? >> Yeah, that's the main thing, the core, and they've had an unbelievable run. I don't know what's Bill been there, 18 years or something? And it's been unbelievable to see what those guys have accomplished and, it all starts at the top. You have a good owner and the best coach ever, and the best quarterback ever so, as long as you get the right guys that buy into that system, and follow those two guys, you're going to have a good team. >> Last year Deion Branch shared with us some great stories about Tom Brady, his, hyper-competitive type of guy. Give us a little color. What's it like playing in front of TB 12? >> Aw, it's great you know, you know he's always prepared. You never have to worry about him, he's going to play great the majority of the time and, just the way he competes and works. It rubs off on other guys and, he's just so dependable and can make all the right reads, throws, and he's a great guy to be around on top of that so, he's the ultimate teammate, and ultimate competitor, and that's why he's had so much success. >> You said that you didn't take, you played through some injuries, you had some, you played when you were hurt and, we know you had some rough injuries during your career, but concussions weren't a concern. Is it something that you look back now, or look at the game today, and all those things about CTE and concussions, is that, you know...? >> Oh yeah, the more you learn about it, the more you worry about it, because you're aware of it now. I think when I started playing football no one talked about it. There was no worries about it, and towards the end of my career it really started coming out, and more comes out about it every year so... Of course you worry about it. You hope you're one of the guys it's not going to affect, but there are guys that it's really affecting in bad ways, so at this stage of my life, it's too late to go back so it's, we'll see what happens I guess. >> Yeah, would you recommend young people going into football, knowing what you know now? >> I think so there's... It's a lot safer now. You're not taking those big... Well, every once in awhile a guy's just going to take one, you just saw Rob the other day. But for the most part they're trying to prevent that, and via techniques that they're teaching now with the blocking and the tackling, to not use your head as much, so it's a lot safer and look, at the end of the day, it's up to whoever's making that decision to play, and if they want to play, then they have the right to play. >> So we're obviously, everybody locally is super excited, getting ready for another Super Bowl. How does the team stay focused? You know, two weeks leading up to it, there's a lot going on. It's not New Orleans that they're going to, but how does the team stay focused on their job? >> Well, this team with the Patriots, they've been through it so many times, and they know what, they have a big job ahead of them. But they do a good job with what I was hearing when we went to Super Bowls. Like all the tickets and the hotel rooms for family and all that, they do a great job by getting that out of the way the first two days, and get that taken care of so you don't have to worry about that. And then it's on to the opponent that you're playing, and you just focus in on that, and Bill has, he's great at just, he draws a line, and follows that line so he'll have everyone in that line, and everyone will be ready, there won't be any distractions, and they'll be ready to go. >> Speaking of distractions, there's been a lot of noise in the press lately, as the relationships, everything like that. When you were in the locker room, does that hit your radar? Do you just focus and do your job? How does that impact what's going on? >> Yeah most stories, they don't bother you. They got to find stuff to write about but, the last one I guess with those guys, the story coming out that they're feuding, and this and that. I don't know if they are or they're not but, if they're not, I think that would upset me if they said I was feuding with someone that I wasn't, that has been a colleague, and most likely a friend of yours for that long. >> Well, Logan Makin, really appreciate you joining. Patriots has some phenomenal guards. You know, Hannah, in the Hall of Fame. You're definitely up there as one of the greatest guards in Patriot's history. >> I appreciate that. >> I really appreciate you joining me. >> Alright, thank you. >> Alright, so thanks again to the VTUG for bringing Logan Mankins. Love being here at the Intersection Virtualization Technology, and the Patriots. I'm Stu Miniman. Thanks for watching theCUBE. (tech music)

live from Gillette Stadium in Foxboro Massachusetts extracting the signal from the noise it's the kue covering Vitas New England winter warmer 2016 now your host Stu minimum welcome back to the cube I'm Stu miniman with Wikibon com we are here at the 2016 v tug winter warmer at Gillette Stadium home of the New England Patriots and very excited to have a patriot Hall of Famer three-time Super Bowl champion number 80 Troy brown Troy thank you so much for stopping by oh man thank you for having me on I appreciate it alright so so so Troy you know we got a bunch of geeks here and they they they we talked about you know their jobs are changing a lot and you know the question I have for you is you did so many different jobs when you're on the Patriot you know how do you manage that how do you go about that from a mindset i mean i think so many of the job you did we're so specialized never spent years doing it yet you know you excelled in a lot of different positions i think first of all i think the coach bill belichick you know I think he does a good job of evaluating is his people and his players and the people that work for them and think about him he never asked an individual to do more than they can handle and I think I was one of those individuals that he saw that could you know didn't get her out about too many different things that didn't get seemed like I was overwhelmed at any moment with the job that I was at already asked to do and if I had to do multiple jobs then I would probably be one of those guys that could handle that type of situation so it started with him and in me I guess it was just my personality and my work havoc and my work ethic and just never letting the opponent know that I was a little bit shaken a little bit weary a little bit tired at times and I just continue to chip away and be my job and not you know and I took a lot of pride in being able to manage and do a lot of different things at one time and and then really accelerate yeah so you saw the transformation in the Patriot organization I mean you know it great organization here in New England but you know we were living in a phenomenal time for the Patriots over the last 20 years it and what do you attribute that that transformation to well I think it started you know you look at when Robert crab bought the team in 94 which I was here year before he bought the team in 93 I was glad to be true Bledsoe and parcels are the first year and that really Parcells really kind of got people around here excited about football I think for the first time they were having you know capacity crowds at training camp out at Bryant college you know something they never did before I mean you're talking about a team that won two games the year prior they were two and 14 and things got so lucky winning those two games in 1992 so you bringing a guy that's you know when a couple super bowls with the Giants high-profile guy gets everybody excited about the possibility of winning and I think things started to change then and then you bring in a hands-on owner because I believe James awethu wine was the previous owner that he bought the team from and lived in st. Louis it can't be hands-on when you you know live you know half the country away from from here so he bought the team and bought the local guy and again that the enthusiasm goes through the roof and expectations in through the roof we make the playoffs in 1994 and you know the things happen they don't get along and then when you go through another coach Pete Carroll for three years and you bring in Belo check and he drives a young quarterback by the name of Tom Brady and you know those types of things those people those guys able to handle different things and different jobs as well you know and you couple that with you surround them with good people like myself david patten Antwone Smith I laws or the lawyer milloy Rodney Harrison guys that kind of embody the Patriot Way and you get what you have today and it all started with the fact that mr. Kraft and Bill Belichick now been together with 15 16 years and I think you look across the NFL across any sport you don't see the type of longevity and the type of continuity that those who have and you throw on Tom Brady into that mixers been along for that entire ride as well you just think you're not going to find out in any other sport any other team maybe a couple here you notice end Antonio Spurs no in longevity I believe it is the key and you have to build that you know see you see too many owners that throwing the town were too quick yeah you know what the young coast is trying to build a team in the system yeah so I have to ask you if you had to choose one for 15 years pray to your Belichick for 15 years yeah 15 years that maybe Brady because you know it eventually will come to an end you know Bella chikan probably coach I want to know one only known for longer than 15 years we had to choose one for 15 years I guess I'll go with Brady but you know I don't think I know if one works not the other you know so that's kind of how to be a question that people be asking for many many years to come yeah so personally for you when you look back at your career you know any favorite moments that they have that mean there's so many to so many the franchise for yourself i mean i could think of all the ones that i had the pleasure to say that was a big punt return against the pittsburgh starters yeah AFC championship no well botas me start up the scoring for us yeah that was a big moment that the strip in 06 in the superbowl that year it was a big play yeah able to get us into the AFC championship game this all the Super Bowls that we were part of and then were able to win and all those moments are just so treasured and value about me that is kind of hard to place a place one over the other but you know it was all a lot of great and fantastic moments for us all right so last question I have for you looking at the Patriots today what's your prediction for the Patriots you know going on in the playoffs here going to the AFC champ I think it a bit difficult task Denver's not been a friendly place for the Patriots over the history of this franchise not just now but it is specifics as to why it's so tough to find there I don't know I don't know what it is I mean you could say the altitude but we've been out then we played well at times even there's team this year they played well the first time they went out there had an unfortunate drop punt you know that kind of changed the complexity of the game and things just changed I mean it's that's the kind of luck that we have the last time I played out there was I think 05 I think of something in the divisional round and I fumbled Kevin Faulk fumble Tom Brady threw a pick-six basically and it was like you threw your most dependable players that turned the football over and didn't play well you know how often that would that happen so Rob Gronkowski gets hit in the knee this year so and then lose him for a couple games and his season starts to turn so just so many unfortunate things that happen out there but you have to give Denver a lot of credit as well because you know they come out and they play hard to have a really good defense quarterback that can be really good you know he's a game manager at this point in his career that's a great job of doing it you know and it seemed to rally behind his presence on the field so it'll be a tough task for the Patriots even though I think the Patriots do have the better football team overall it's just been a difficult place for the New England Patriots to get wins yeah in the past I said you have a matchup for the Super Bowl that you're picking I'm picking the Patriots for sure and from what I saw from Carolina last week I got to go with Carolina playing at home against Arizona I think the defense is just too tough and Cam Newton and that run game and that offensive line has just been been pretty remarkable and surprising after losing probably the best offensive weapon in Kelvin Benjamin so yeah well you know a little something about a Carolina versa you know New England Super Bowl so hopefully things will turn out like it did last time try really appreciate you stopping by thank you so much for trying to save the program will be right back here with a wrap-up of the cubes coverage of the V tug 2016 winter warmer thanks so much for watching you