Patriots Minicamp: Amendola Shines, Chandler Makes His Mark
Tuesday was the first of three practices as the Patriots began their minicamp sessions at Gillette Stadium, and there were some interesting notes from the first day as New England started their final set of practices before training camp opens next month.
There were some notable names missing from the opening practice, with the Boston Herald reporting that Chandler Jones, Jamie Collins, Sebastian Vollmer, Brandon LaFell and Matthew Slater among the bigger names absent, as well as Dane Fletcher, Chris Jones and Ryan Wendell. Also not on hand were Jerod Mayo, Dont'a Hightower and Sealver Siliga, although each are recovering from significant injuries and it wasn't much of a surprise to find out they weren't out practicing.
 Amendola has reportedly look strong so far during Patriots minicamp. (USA TODAY Images) |
Danny Amendola was a player who had a big afternoon, with the veteran receiver reportedly making some terrific plays and showing his athleticism after making some leaping grabs as well as scoring a touchdown. Amendola came on strong at the end of 2014 and appears to be regaining his confidence, which could certainly be good news for the Patriots as they're already coming off a solid year offensively and gaining more productivity from Amendola in 2015 will only make them that much better.
Also making some plays was receiver Josh Boyce, who reportedly had several receptions from Brady during the practice, although he was among receivers who had a drop during the session. However, one of the players to keep an eye on appears to be newly acquired tight end Scott Chandler, with the former Buffalo Bills player making a terrific play and catching a touchdown over Devin McCourty. He appeared to get banged up toward the end of practice with an apparent rib injury, but most reports seem to believe it's nothing serious.
New quarterback Matt Flynn was part of the mix but it was Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo who continued to look sharp, with Garoppolo rebounding from the rough outing he had during OTAs and playing well on Tuesday. According to media reports, he finished 26-of-32 in 11-on-11s with one interception, while Brady finished 24-of-33. Both quarterbacks were 5-of-6 during 7-on-7s. According to NESN.com, Garoppolo also reportedly saw extra time working with Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski, with the second-year quarterback getting some additional reps in with the two veteran players.
Tyler Gaffney also had some good moments, with the Boston Herald reporting that Tuesday was one of the most active days he's seen after catching four passes and taking several handoffs during the 11-on-11 period with Garoppolo.
So far at cornerback Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler have been seeing the majority of the work, with the two obviously expected to be pushed into a larger role after the Patriots saw Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner depart in free agency.
Ryan had a decent afternoon, although according to the Herald, he did get beat on a couple of plays. For now he's just continuing to work on getting better during these practices.
"It’s always an opportunity. You play the position. You do all the work, and you lift all the weights to get the ball thrown at you,” Ryan told the newspaper. “It’s an opportunity to make an interception, it’s an opportunity to make plays, so when a quarterback challenges you, that’s the name of the game. You’re not going to win every single challenge, you just got to stay consistent out there and play within the scheme. That’s when plays happen.”
