Patriots training camp Day 1: Mac Jones sizzles, Matt Patricia calls plays and a new receiver shines
FOXBORO — The chants rang out from a small, grassy hill, steps from where the Patriots had just completed their first training camp practice of the summer.
Thousands had attended Wednesday’s practice from the stands on a muggy New England morning, content with hundreds of snaps, passes and runs. But these fans craved more.
“We want Mac! We want Mac! We want Mac!”
Smiling, the Patriots’ second-year quarterback broke from a mid-field gathering of teammates and strode over to fulfill his weekly media obligation. He stopped at an empty microphone positioned between the team’s main practice fields and inside a crowd of reporters, roughly 40 yards from the hill. He took questions about himself, practice. the new offense and unusual coaching arrangement.
If the fans could’ve heard Jones, they would have been delighted. It was all good news. And why wouldn’t it be?
On Wednesday, Jones completed 18 of 22 passes in competitive team drills, bringing to life all the proclamations about his offseason improvement. Jones’ offense won the day, save for a 6-play stretch in a late red-zone period where the defense notched four pass breakups. After the deflection spree, Jones lofted a perfect, 10-yard touchdown to Nelson Agholor and hit Damien Harris in the left flat for another score that forced the entire defense to drop for pushups.
Like their adoring fans at a distance, the Patriots want more from Mac this season. And for one practice, they got it.
Here are the Herald’s complete practice observations:
Attendance
Absent: None
Limited: RB Pierre Strong
Non-contact jersey: None
PUP: C David Andrews, RB James White, DB Jonathan Jones, S Jabrill Peppers
NFI : DB Marcus Bryant, OL Chasen Hines, OL Andrew Stueber
Non-football illness list: P Jake Bailey
Notes: Strong was the only surprise here. Every active player participated. Most of the unavailable players on PUP or NFI conditioned on a lower practice field. Several were spotted without uniforms, including Andrews, White and Peppers.
Play of the Day
Agholor’s high-pointed touchdown
On the list of potential Patriots bounce-back candidates, Nelson Agholor might be No. 1 with a bullet. And especially after practices like Wednesday’s.
Agholor caught both targets in team periods, his last the aforementioned fade-route touchdown against Malcolm Butler. Turning around for the ball as he closed on the back right pylon, Agholor leapt and high-pointed the ball for a score. He secured the catch directly over Butler, who was quickly surrounded by a cluster of celebrating offensive teammates.
Player of the Day
WR DeVante Parker
Parker scored three touchdowns on contested catches, out-muscling rookies Marcus Jones and Jack Jones before he victimized Joejuan Williams. Parker and Jones seem to have established an immediate chemistry, despite a quiet two-day minicamp. The 6-foot-3, 219-pound wideout is expected to play like a power forward on the perimeter, and that’s precisely what he did in his Patriots training camp debut.
Now, if only he can stay healthy.
Patriots training camp 2022: Predictions, position battles and breakout players
QB Corner
Note: The passing stats below were tallied during competitive, full-speed periods of 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 only. The stats in parentheses represent each quarterback's passing totals for training camp.
Mac Jones: 18/22
Brian Hoyer: 6/10, INT
Bailey Zappe: 2/4
Studs
S Joshuah Bledsoe
Remember him?
A sixth-round pick in 2021, Bledsoe notched a team-high two pass breakups in team periods. He knocked away a pass intended for Jakobi Meyers on a crossing route, then killed Hoyer's last offering of the day. Bledsoe is billed as a hybrid safety/nickelback, and he looked like one Wednesday.
QB Mac Jones
He was Mac 2.0, as advertised. Let's see it again, and then with pads on next week.
Duds
WR Jakobi Meyers
The Patriots' leading receiver for two straight seasons went catch-less in team periods, as Bledsoe deflected his only target. Meyers should have better days ahead.
QB Bailey Zappe
Zappe's placement here deserves some context. He is a fourth-round rookie, after all, and saw just four reps in team periods. But those four reps resulted in a bad miss, an overthrow, a completion after four-plus seconds of dancing in the pocket and a completion to backup tight end Dalton Keene in the flat. He deserves time and patience.
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Offensive notes
- Bill Belichick won't budge publicly on who his next offensive play-caller will be, but we may not have to ask him for much longer. Matt Patricia appeared to radio plays in via walkie-talkie during every 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 period, an increase in his workload from minicamp.
- Before every snap, Patricia spoke into his walkie-talkie and then stopped speaking as the quarterback entered the huddle.
- During these drills, Joe Judge stood behind the action with Belichick and periodically glanced at his play sheet and communicated with the quarterbacks.
- As for the quarterbacks, Mac Jones went 16-of-18 on passes attempted within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. He was 2-of-4 downfield, and the majority of his attempts went left.
- Wednesday's red-zone emphasis put a lid on the offense's verticality, and any passes attempted beyond 10 yards were typically into traffic. That includes a needle Jones threaded to Ty Montgomery in the end zone after spinning left and away from trouble to extend one red-zone snap.
- Top targets in full-speed, competitive team drills: Kendrick Bourne 4/4, DeVante Parker 3/4, Devin Asiasi 2/4, Damien Harris 3/3, Rhamondre Stevenson 3/3, Kristian Wilkerson 1/3.
- Drops: None
- Bourne's receptions were all on crossing routes, designs that maximize his run-after-catch ability.
- Parker brought a new energy to practice, celebrating each of his contested-catch touchdowns with the fans. If he can consistently win 1-on-1 through his physicality, he'll also introduce a new dynamic this offense hasn't seen since Rob Gronkowski.
- Speaking of physicality, second-round rookie Tyquan Thornton got the worst of it during a few reps where Malcolm Butler and Jack Jones controlled him off the line through press coverage.
- Thornton did, however, bounce back with a couple diving snags in the end zone on back-to-back plays.
- Minicamp darling Tre Nixon didn't catch a pass in team drills.
- Quiet day for tight ends Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith, who shared the field for significant portions of 11-on-11 periods.
- Smith had a minor injury scare on the second rep of 7-on-7s, when he tumbled into the left sideline at the end of a deep crossing route and came up slowly.
- Nice practice for Devin Asiasi, who's on the bubble as the team's projected No. 3 tight end. Hoyer found Asiasi in the right flat for his first catch, then Jones dropped an end-zone dime over his shoulder to reward a well-run corner route against Devin McCourty late in practice.
- Running backs Damien Harris, Rhamondre Stevenson and Ty Montgomery flashed soft hands all practice long, though only Montgomery caught a pass beyond the flat.
- Trent Brown continued to rep at left tackle, while Isaiah Wynn took snaps at right tackle. The switch looks permanent.
- Belichick spent most of his time coaching the offense, a continuation of minicamp. Early in practice, he worked alongside Judge during 1-on-0 throwing drills incorporating the quarterbacks and wide receivers.
Defensive notes
- Starting and second-string personnel during team periods: defensive linemen Deatrich Wise, Davon Godchaux, Christian Barmore, Lawrence Guy, Henry Anderson and Daniel Ekuale, linebackers Matt Judon, Ja'Whaun Bentley, Raekwon McMillan, Mack Wilson, Jahlani Tavai, Josh Uche, Anfernee Jennings and defensive backs Devin McCourty, Kyle Dugger, Adrian Phillips, Jalen Mills, Malcolm Butler, Terrance Mitchell and Jack Jones.
- Interceptions: Joejuan Williams
- Pass breakups: Joshuah Bledsoe 2, Jalen Mills
- Sacks: Josh Uche, Daniel Ekuale, Team
- Jalen Mills and Terrance Mitchell started at cornerback with the first-team defense. Malcolm Butler and Jack Jones were first off the bench. A rotation should be expected throughout most of camp.
- Mills was the only cornerback who could stand up to Parker inside the end zone, where he boxed Parker out on a fade throw and easily broke up Jones' incoming pass.
- Raekwon McMillan and Mack Wilson were the first inside linebackers to take the field in 7-on-7s, followed by Ja'Whaun Bentley and Jahlani Tavai. Wilson is the only one of that group considered to be average or better in coverage.
- Safeties coach Steve Belichick praised Kyle Dugger for forcing an end-zone overthrow intended for Asiasi with his tight coverage.
- Before his interception of Brian Hoyer, Joejuan Williams got away with defensive pass interference, tearing at Kristian Wilkerson before the ball arrived on an in-cut.
- Backup corner Shaun Wade saw significant time covering the slot in Jonathan Jones' absence. He's on the back end of the roster bubble.
- Third-year outside linebacker Josh Uche continues to explode off the edge and would've nabbed the first sack, had contacting quarterbacks been allowed.
Special teams
- Punt returners: Kyle Dugger, Kendrick Bourne, Tre Nixon, Marcus Jones and Jack Jones.
- With Jake Bailey out (non-football illness) undrafted rookie Jake Julien took all of the limited reps at punter.
- Tyquan Thornton continues to rep as a gunner, a role that would immediately test his strength, a concern about his game at 6-foot-2 and 182 pounds.
- Newly converted offensive lineman Bill Murray, who was a practice-squad defensive lineman the past two years, lined up with the field goal unit.
Odds and ends
- Owner Robert Kraft greeted players as they walked on to the fields. He later stood for an interview with German media midway through practice.
- Retired running backs coach Ivan Fears again observed practice, just as he did during spring OTAs and minicamp.
- The tight ends, linebackers and offensive and defensive linemen all wore "Guardian Caps" on their helmets during practice, a new league rule intended to protect players at these positions from head injuries. The Guardian Caps are form-fitted pads that cover the entire helmet.
from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/RksOqDz
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