The Patriots wore pads for the second day in a row during a two-hour session, the longest of the summer. It was also the hottest day by a decent margin. The practice featured Red Zone work for the first time since camp began, including 7-on-7s and 11-on-11s.
Matt Judon, who made headlines Monday over a contentious hold-in attempt, was a no-show today. According to NBC Sports Boston‘s Phil Perry, Judon wasn’t at the facility due to a “sizable gap in what Judon is looking for and what the Patriots have offered.
Jabrill Peppers was absent after appearing to suffer a lower-body injury yesterday. Marte Mapu and Jaheim Bell watched practice from the sidelines in jerseys but no pads. Mapu appeared to be taking mental reps behind the defense during full-field team work.
DeMario Douglas wore a red non-contact jersey for the first time in camp and finally saw action in team drills. He only took a few reps, but one was a goal line touchdown on a quick out from Drake Maye. He also looked great attacking passes before practice.
Shaun Wade was once again in a red non-contact jersey in a red jersey. He had an impressive breakup on a backshoulder fade to Javon Baker that led to pushups for the offense.
JuJu Smith-Schuster limped off the field with trainers late in today’s practice. According to the receiver, he hurt himself after tripping on a rock.
Here are my top observations from today’s practice.
Physically Unable to Perform
Absent
Red Non-Contact
Did Not Participate
Injuries
Quarterbacks Struggle in Competitive Practice
Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye have essentially alternated positive performances in training camp. Maye took a slight lead early, but Brissett pulled ahead with strong outings on Sunday and Monday. But today, both veteran and rookie had mostly subpar performances.
Brissett was nearly picked by Joshuah Bledsoe during an early 11-on-11 drill, throwing behind Hunter Henry on a crossing route. When the team moved into scoring territory, two of his passes sailed over their target before he rebounded with a tight-window throw to Henry in the back of the end zone. Later, with the full field at his disposal, Brissett threw well behind Jalen Reagor on a slant, then put another Reagor target low over the middle. Brissett’s inconsistency was odd, given his usual accuracy and the time provided on most dropbacks. Still, there were a few positive moments. The veteran had one of the throws of the day to Ja’Lynn Polk in the corner of the end zone during Red Zone. He also bounced back after the offense ran a lap for an illegal substitution, hitting KJ Osborn on a crossing route and getting fired up. Brissett will look to have a more complete performance on Thursday.
Maye looked as accurate as he has all summer during warm-ups, throws on air, and 1-on-1s.
This was most evident on out-breaking routes, where he often misses high or behind. The rookie was solid, if unspectacular, early in team drills, finding his outlets and attacking underneath. Things got dicier from there, including an overthrown double-move to Osborn, a short throw behind Mitchell Wilcox where the tight end was sandwiched by defenders, and a high throw on a bootleg to his left. The Maye-led offense also had to re-huddle after a pre-snap error, and there was a fumbled handoff attempt to Kevin Harris, though I’m not sure who was at fault. Pass rush was once again an issue behind the second line, as Maye was forced into some quick decisions and looked uncomfortable going through reads. While it’s impossible to know how much of Maye’s uneasiness is due to protection and how much is the speed of the pro game, the rookie has understandably underwhelmed this week.
Before fans hit the panic button, Reagor offered some optimism after practice, telling reporters, “Whenever he does get more opportunities, he’s going to show you guys how great he really is and why he went where he went.”
None of the issues we’ve seen from Maye are things that weren’t on his college tape. He also deserves credit for consistently protecting the football. There’s still plenty of offseason left, but Jacoby Brissett being the starter for Week 1 and beyond feels like more of a reality by the day.
Joe Milton and Bailey Zappe continue to switch off during team periods, but Milton had three sets of reps while Zappe had one. Milton could still take some heat off of passes, but he was accurate and has seemingly made a point of attacking underneath. During low Red Zone drills, he threw a touchdown to Polk and fit another to Smith-Schuster in a tight window. Zappe could be losing ground in the QB3 competition.
Young Wide Receivers Stacking Good Days
Externally, not much is expected of the Patriots’ receiving corps. But their young receivers have earned their flowers.
With Douglas limited, Ja’Lynn Polk continues to work with the top offense in the slot and at Z. He picked up where he left off this spring during Red Zone work, making a high-point grab on a fade and beating Shaun Wade on a quick out. Polk also had a strong 1-on-1 period, including a contested grab near the sideline with Marcus Jones on his hip.
It’s still early, but with the rookie’s consistency and reliability, Polk feels like a day-one starter for the Patriots’ offense.
Baker didn’t have any spectacular grabs today, but he was consistently open deep during 1-on-1s. I watched at least four reps where he decisively stacked or blew past his defender, but was well over or underthrown. Reagor mentioned the wind during that portion of practice during interviews, so that could have played a factor. Baker will have to fend off Reagor and Tyquan Thornton before earning the top X spot, but I would be stunned if he doesn’t have a significant role from the jump as an ISO specialist.
Polk and Baker each had a drop for the second day in a row, which you want to see cleaned up. Polk also appeared to be responsible for an illegal substitution. That said, given the separation and ball skills the rookies have provided rep-to-rep, you’ll live with some growing pains.
Speaking of Thornton, he’s missed just one practice since the spring and is catching everything thrown his way in camp. This included a 1-on-1 win against Marco Wilson that drew a vocal response from Brissett. Thornton’s dynamic speed makes him a near-lock if he carries this consistency over into games.
Kayshon Boutte also deserves credit for bringing in difficult passes regularly since the last day of the minicamp. He’s had a deep catch in each 1-on-1s session, including a beauty today where Marcus Jones had near-perfect coverage.
Even journeyman Jalen Reagor has shown up in the deep passing game daily.
Last training camp, DeVante Parker was the Patriots’ only viable deep threat. This year, nearly every receiver with a shot at the roster has made plays consistently.
Top Offensive Line Remains Consistent and Competitive
The Patriots may have found their best five offensive line combination. Outside of Nick Leverett, who’s subbed in for David Andrews the past two days, the unit stayed steady for a fourth straight day. Caedan Wallace has been locked into the left side with Chukwuma Okorafor flanking him on the right. Wallace had a few more losses than yesterday, but has been impressive overall.
Jacoby Brissett had another day of largely clean pockets. The added contact of padded practices has appeared to benefit the unit, with Sidy Sow saying yesterday that he ended a pass pro rep with a single, well-executed punch. The run game wasn’t as consistent as yesterday, but it was competitive against a stout Patriots front. Rhamondre Stevenson and Kevin Harris each had a pair of big gains, which came on both gap and outside zone concepts.
Mike Onwenu summed up the starters’ competitiveness against a stout defensive front, telling reporters, “The last two days, the offense has come out, and we’ve been letting our pads do the talking. So they’re good, but hey, they still gotta go against us every day.”
Alex Van Pelt’s offense runs through its layered ground game, which opens up play-action, RPOs, and moving pockets to be a viable option in favorable situations. Onwenu touched on this, explaining, “Over the last few days, we’ve kind of ran a little bit of everything. Yesterday, we started doing gap scheme blocks and power and all that. So I think it’s been helping us with the play-action and run-action, and just really giving the defense different looks.”
New England’s second line hasn’t been as reliable. Layden Robinson seemed to take a step back after a strong performance yesterday, and Vederian Lowe hasn’t looked great on the right side. Calvin Anderson has been the group’s one bright spot at left tackle and hasn’t given up much pressure.
Overall, for a group that most expected to be a glaring weakness this season, the Patriots’ offensive line has impressed, particularly at the top. Not having to face Judon or Christian Barmore can’t be overlooked, but credit where it’s due.
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