If anyone knows what Asante Samuel?s going through, it?s Deion Branch. A year ago, the wide receiver was preparing to hold out for a long-term contract from the Patriots. He was traded instead to the Seahawks, and the fallout continued reverberating this winter, when the Patriots signed a slew of wideouts in what amounted to a tacit acknowledgement they never should have let Branch leave. ?We?ve spoken,? Branch said yesterday from Seattle after spending the majority of his offseason in Boston. ?Our situations are the same as far as holding out, but they?re two different examples. I was due about $1 million. He?s due $7.8 million. The most important thing I tell him is to do what?s in his heart. If he feels holding out is the right thing, then that?s what he should do.?

Patriots defensive end Ty Warren is seeking a new agent. His decision will surely be watched closely by the Patriots, who figure to be interested in retaining Warren when his contract expires after the 2008 season.

Laurence Maroney lifted the barbell over his head, settled it on the back of his shoulders, and did a number of squats. Up and down he went, flexing his knees with the heavy weight bearing on his shoulders. Over and over again. There were five huge weights hitched to each side of the bar, roughly 305 pounds worth of tonnage, as sweat poured down his face, as Maroney continued the repetitions while filming a TV commercial yesterday for Reebok and sporting goods retailer Modell?s. When asked if he would be ready for training camp, which begins July 27, Maroney went against course, and provided a somewhat more substantive response. ?Everything is looking on pace to me,? he said. ?I don?t have a projection. I?ll be out there hopefully when I get out there, but until then, I?m going to work hard every day to get better.?

The Patriots will not allow holdout, franchised corner Asante Samuel to bolt to the Jets - unless New York is willing to part with two first-round draft choices. Of course, it will also take hell freezing over before Eric Mangini gives Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli two first-rounders. So there is no practical way for Samuel to end up with the Jets, just as there was no prayer of Deion Branch going to New York last year. So any conversations the Jets have with Samuel are done with only the intention of poisoning the waters in New England.

The Patriots signed defensive linemen Rashad Moore and Kenny Smith, both free agents, and released long snapper Tony Case on Friday.

According to a source with knowledge of the situation, ?several teams? have expressed a willingness to meet Asante Samuel?s asking price, which is a contract in the neighborhood of the eight-year, $80 million deal free agent Nate Clements signed with the 49ers. The Patriots offered a one-year, $7.79 million franchise tender that Samuel has yet to sign. The source said the Jets inquired about Samuel, but declined to acknowledge their interest or disclose if it was affected by the NFL draft-day trade that netted Pitt corner Darrelle Revis in the first round. A second source added that the Patriots are holding firm for the two first-round picks they?d receive as compensation, if Samuel signed an offer sheet and they declined to match. While it appears unlikely any of Samuel?s suitors will meet that demand, the Jets at least tested the waters. Their interest makes sense. New York coach Eric Mangini served as Samuel?s secondary coach in 2003-04 and defensive coordinator in 2005 before taking the Jets job. He knows what Samuel can do. The Jets are in solid salary cap position, with roughly $6 million to spend, though a portion of that money will be used to sign draft picks. Regardless, there?s room to fit Samuel with a little maneuvering. The bigger issue would be getting him out of New England, since the Pats are unlikely to deal with their rivals. Reached by e-mail last night, Samuel?s agent, Alonzo Shavers, declined comment.

For once, Tom Brady looked uncomfortable. When huge linemen charge him, he's cool. When the quarterback needs a touchdown in the last two minutes, he's poised. But when he's asked about fathering a child out of wedlock, the life in his voice fades and his natural smile stiffens. "I don't want to talk about that much, guys," Brady said from the podium after the Patriots' first practice of minicamp Tuesday. "Let's try to stick to why I'm up here. "Life changes for everybody. There's different things that everybody deals with in their life, you guys deal with, I deal with. I'm excited about this season, I'm excited about this year and, as with life and maturing, come other challenges as well. I'm just looking forward to seeing what this team is all about. I'm looking for a great year."

Patriots cornerback Asante Samuel says he won't show up for the team's mandatory minicamp, starting Tuesday. Or training camp this summer. Or the first 10 weeks of regular season games. Samuel, disgruntled after being assigned the team's "franchise" tag, was a no-show at the Patriots Charitable Foundation golf tournament on Monday at the The International Golf Club in Bolton, Mass. Reached by phone afterwards, he told The Boston Globe he is unhappy with the lack of progress in contract talks with the team. "I'm not coming to camp," he told the newspaper. "I'm not showing up until the 10th week [of the season]. I feel unappreciated. The way they're treating me is just wrong."

As he stood near the casket of late Patriots teammate Marquise Hill, defensive lineman Jarvis Green swallowed hard, took some deep breaths and offered a few fond memories to Hill's grieving relatives. "He made everybody laugh," Green said. "The first time I met him he made me laugh and the last time I talked to him he made me laugh. He worked hard. He gave his all. ... That's the kind of person he was."

Veteran Joe Andruzzi, released by the Browns last month after two seasons with the club, has been diagnosed with a treatable form of non-Hodgkins lymphoma. His agent, Joe Linta, said Friday that the 31-year-old Andruzzi has begun getting chemotherapy treatments at the Dana Farber Institute in Boston, a hospital for which he helped raise money while playing for the Patriots.