The Keene family was adjusting like the rest of us. The coronavirus has made sure of that.
But at least the Colorado family of five will be able to look back at its 1 1/2-month stretch with memories of improvisation, some smiles, a few laughs and a signature moment -- when Dalton Keene was drafted in the third round of the NFL Draft by the Patriots.
"We made the most of it," chuckled Trey Keene, Dalton's older brother.
The end of the journey -- the moment the former Virginia Tech standout was picked -- proved to be a microcosm of life not going quite as the Keenes had planned.
There were no ESPN cameras, just a family hunkered down in its Littleton, Colorado home. The group was hopeful Dalton would be a Day 2 selection. He had made a list of teams that were showing the most interest and possessed a need for a player of his skill-set, with the Patriots included among the organizations. But they were also realistic, with the lack of a network video stream (as so many picks in the first three rounds had set up) doing nothing to offer some caution.
"We weren’t really sure," said Trey, a former collegiate pitcher, and linebacker at Northern Colorado. "I think the consensus on everything was that he was going to be a Saturday pick. But obviously you just never know with that stuff. We knew he had a lot of talent. We knew if people really dug into his film there were going to be a lot of things that didn’t show up to certain people. It was just surreal to see him go in the third round. It was awesome. It was kind of what we had our fingers crossed for."
Happy? Yes. Surprised? Absolutely. And if there were any doubts regarding how those emotions permeated through the Keenes' living room understand the flurry of chaos that accompanied a mere matter of minutes. Again, not exactly as they had planned.
"He got the call and it was kind of a funny deal," Trey explained. "The Patriots called but the Jets were on the board and it was obviously the first time for us so we didn’t know what to expect. We see the Jets on the board but the Pats were calling. Then in the middle of the call it got cut off. We’re thinking, ‘Is this a prank call? What’s going on? The Jets are on the board.’ So we were really confused for a second. Thirty seconds later they called back. The very beginning was very eventful. We were kind of a mess. It was awesome. We were all just so excited. It was great."
But that isn't the whole story when it comes to those few moments.
"It was kind of funny because we were a mess," Trey said. "He got the call and my dad was tripping over the chair. We accidentally turned the TV all the way up while he was on the phone trying to hear what was going on. We were like, ‘Man, it’s probably a good idea we didn’t have a camera here because we were a mess.’ We probably should have practiced our routine before.
"My dad had got up too fast and tripped over the chair, kicked the remote, the remote went up and it kicked the volume on the TV and we thought he was going to accidentally change the channel. So Dalton is trying to hear what was going on on the phone. I’m trying to get the TV back down. My dad is freaking out. It was just a mess. It was funny."
It was fitting. The unexpected nature of Dalton's final steps to the NFL had been littered with landmines ever since he returned from training in Dallas. He wasn't alone. COVID-19 was making everybody preparing for the NFL Draft make a change of plans. For the Keenes, that meant the minute Dalton arrived in Colorado his father, Wesley -- a former football player at Murray State -- and Trey sprung into action.
There the squat rack borrowed from Dalton's high school. Some useful pieces of equipment brought over from Trey's place. And, finally, some items from Wesley's short-lived days as a professional boxer.
"It would get kind of crowded but we would just try and keep a good pace on it," Dalton's older brother explained. "The heavy bag, especially because in close quarters, is a great cardio workout. It’s a little outside of the box, but it gets the job when we’re limited on resources."
And when it came to actually keeping the tight end's football skills sharp, that's where the former college outfielder came in, making the 15-minute drive from Trey's place in Denver to serve as the "all-time quarterback," throwing passes while Dalton ran his routes.
"Just had to improvise, just like everybody," Trey said.