As ugly as it’s been around Foxborough lately, things could be much, much worse.

With so much chaos going in the world and this country seemingly in more and more disarray by the minute, football is obviously providing an escape for many, including players.

But, when the wins aren’t coming, it’s easy for fans – especially around here after so many years of success – to quickly turn negative, and rightfully so, that’s what being fan is all about. But, players can’t take the same approach. Being husbands and fathers once they leave the building is priority No. 1 and it’s helped alleviate some of the stress of playing for a 1-4 Patriots team at the moment.

“I mean, look, no one died,” said David Andrews on Wednesday. “There’s a lot going on, but we’re playing football. We get to play football for a living. I love what I do. It ain’t…look, you don’t execute on Sundays, you get beat. That’s what happens in this league. Teams are too good. It’s tough, but like I said, win, loss or draw, you’ve got to move on week-to-week and play a one-week season.

“My wife, she’s been with me the whole ride. She kind of knows when to push and when to not push. It’s tough, You work hard every week, you inadvertently carry things home. She understands. It takes a real special person to be married to me. She’s a lot better than I am. I couldn’t imagine being married to her doing what I am some times.”

Lawrence Guy is another veteran who’s been through it all here in New England and echoed many of the same sentiments as Andrews.

“We’re not just playing to win the game. We’re playing for the person that’s next to us. We’re playing for the person behind us. We’re playing for the person on the other side of the ball. That’s who we’re playing this game for,” he said. “We’re still going out there to have fun. I tell people all the time, win or lose, my kids don’t care. I’m going to come home and be dad. I’ve got to let that go. I’m out here to have fun. We’re blessed to play this game. We used to call it a kid’s game – it’s a little more violent to call it a kid’s game at this level – but, it’s like, we’re blessed to be able to go out here and play this game, so take the opportunity. There’s so many people out here that want this opportunity. Win or lose, you have the opportunity to come out here and play the game you always wanted to play as a professional.

“When things are going bad during games, it’s not a flashback to when I was a kid playing the game, but I just think about it like, you know what? Why did I put this work in? Why am I doing what I’m doing. The best thing about it is…Tuesday, my oldest daughter looked at me and said ‘daddy, can I be the cheerleader for you?’ And I was like, this is one of the reasons I play this game. She gets to enjoy seeing me. She didn’t see if we won or lost, she just saw me out there playing. That’s the inspiration. Or, going up at the end of the game and say ‘hey man, I watch your film, you’re a big inspiration on me. Thank you, keep doing what you’re doing,’ that’s the reason hy we play. We’re going to inspire so many more people to achieve their goals.”