The New England Patriots kicked off the second week of full-speed training camp by returning to their outfit with full pads worn last Thursday. The intensity and physicality were, of course, greatly improved again, with the session itself one of the worst so far: the offense and defense were kept verbally engaged on several occasions, and the other side regularly heard about major plays.
However, before we get to ourselves, let’s revisit what happened in today’s practice.
Rise
Absent: DT Beau Allen, TE Jake Burt, OT Yodny Cajuste, CB Stephon Gilmore, LB Brandon King (Reserve / PUP), RB Sony Michel (active / PUP), RB Lamar Miller (active / PUP), WR Jeff Thomas
Return: LB Tashawn Bower, CB Michael Jackson Sr., RB JJ Taylor, RB James White
Available but limited: S Kyle Dugger, WR Jakobi Meyers, S Adrian Phillips, QB Jarrett Stidham
- One new player was added to the list of absentees: offensive tackle Yodny Cajuste, who was sidelined last year after offseason quad surgery, was not present for today’s session, and joined seven others to to exercise.
- Four players were back in action after sitting out Sunday practice, including three who may have been victims of the recent NFL hiccup in Covid-19 tests: running backs James White and JJ Taylor as well as cornerbacks Michael Jackson. Linebacker Tashawn Bower, meanwhile, came back after being out all of last week.
- Kicker Nick Folk and defensive lineman Michael Barnett, who were drafted over the weekend, were present for the current practice after signing free agency with the Patriots.
Injuries
- Second-year linebacker Terez Hall completed 45 minutes of practice off the field earlier. He has been solid in camp so far while trying to carve out a role on the Patriots’ off-the-ball linebacker depth map.
- Rookie linebacker Cassh Maluia fell down with what appeared to be a shoulder injury following a physical block by Devin Asiasi during 11-on-11 work. The sixth-round draft pick, which also had a promising training camp, slowly ran off the field.
Offensive
Quarterback performance: Jarrett Stidham 2 of 3 (11-on-11s); Cam Newton 10 of 18 with 1 INT (11-on-11s), 5 of 6 (7-on-7s); Brian Hoyer 11 out of 14 (11-on-11s), 2 out of 3 (7-on-7s)
- Cam Newton stays on track to earn the starting quarterback job, led the team again in playing reps, and had some impressive throws as he becomes more confident in the system. That being said, he had some issues with accuracy, especially late in practice, as well as ball safety: Newton threw a sub in during 11-on-11 work and was later forced to run a penalty kick for losing a fumble .
- Broad receiver N’Keal Harry stole the show Monday and had his best practice of the open part of training camp. The former draft pick for first-round looked very good during 1-on-1 drilling – at one point out-jumping fellow second-year man Joejuan Williams for a catch from behind-the-shoulder – and also had two touchdown grips against JC Jackson during 11-on-11s on passes from Cam Newton: one came back on one shoulder, the other on a slope.
- However, the misconduct also had some tricky moments in the work of full team. As noted above, Newton was forced to run a penalty kick after losing a fumble during an 11-on-11 drill. Broad receiver Gunner Olszewski followed him later after he also put the football on the ground.
- Jarrett Stidham was again a limited participant while working through a hip injury, but he saw an increased workload compared to the last two practices. The second-year quarterback not only took part in the warm-up and positional resources of early practice, but also threw passes during 1-on-1s as well as 11-on-11s. It was a step in the right direction.
Defense
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Myles Bryant’s promising training camp went on Monday when the developed rookie cornerback recorded yet another interpretation. This time he was able to take down Cam Newton on a deep passing effort meant for Damiere Byrd. Newton had Julian Edelman open under them but instead drove a deep ball into double cover that came short of his goal. Bryant took advantage of the poorly advised throw for his third pick of camp.
- Edge defender Chase Winovich, who is poised to take on a bigger role this year following the free agency departure of veteran Kyle Van Noy, had two of the best plays of the day’s defense. First, he was able to get in the backfield to take down quarterback Cam Newton for what would be a case in a situation in the real game on 3rd-and-goal. Later, he forced a fumble from Newton and returned the loose football for a touchdown.
- Winovich was not the only active pass rusher on Monday. Josh Uche also performed well and recorded a few necessary sacks, while Jason McCourty and Deatrich Wise Jr both both added quarterback takedowns of their own while practicing while the team went through end-of-game / end-of-half work. Adam Butler and Derek Rivers, meanwhile, also had some great moments, while the pass as a whole looked very potential.
Special teams
- The Patriots kick-off competition is underway, and the first day went to recently re-signed Nick Folk from a purely statistical perspective: the veteran scored four of four field goals during team drills, compared to Justin Rohrwasser who scored three of made four steps. The rookie had some extra miscues earlier in the practice.
Miscellaneous
- Justin Rohrwasser was again the first player on the field.
- The Patriots had their annual rookie slip ‘n’ slide today. With Tom Brady no longer part of the team, Matthew Slater took over the honor of operating the snake. First-year coaches also attended the event.
