Friday Patriots Training Camp Observations: 7/31/15
The New England Patriots took the field for the second day on Friday morning. Here were my observations from day two. --
- Another relatively light day for the team. Not as humid, but very hot. That didn't stop Pats fans from packing the surrounding areas, surely toping the 10,108 reported attendance from Thursday.
Players were in shorts and jerseys, thankfully with numbers Friday. As it states in the Collective Bargaining Agreement, clubs cannot practice in pads until the third day, so we likely won’t see that until Saturday.
- Brandon LaFell, Matt Flynn, Dane Fletcher, Ryan Wendell, Chris Barker, Chris White, Vince Taylor, Caylin Hauptmann and AJ Derby were not spotted.
LeGarrette Blount, Alan Branch and Dominique Easley were seen on the sidelines watching their teammates go through day two.
I spent some time with Blount Thursday. While he has not passed his conditioning test, he does look solid and may have dropped some weight from last season. He should be joining the team soon.
– A lot of energy from the fans again. Breaking out in "Brady!" chants throughout the session. Chandler Jones had a great comment after practice saying, "Tom is a legend. I even get hyped up when I hear everyone yelling his name."
- One of the biggest takeaways from Friday was the perceived first unit offensive lineman. Sebastian Vollmer was dressed, but spent the afternoon watching the group. There are questions if he is fully healthy and definitely something to monitor as we continue on.
As for the unit that saw the most "first team" reps, Nate Solder (left tackle), Shaq Mason (left guard), Bryan Stork (center), Tre Jackson (right guard) and Marcus Cannon (right tackle).
- James White, Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola spent time returning punts.
- White, going into his second season after a quiet rookie year, saw a lot of action in the backfield and looked comfortable catching the football. Dion Lewis was in the mix at tailback, too.
- Aaron Dobson continues to see plenty of action with Brandon LaFell sidelined. Dobson is catching nearly everything coming his way, but he needs to continue to impress with a lot riding on this off-season.
Keep your eye on Brandon Gibson at receiver. He's fighting for a roster spot and is making his opportunity count. It looks like an uphill battle for him, but he has a chance to slide onto the roster.
- Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo were sharp Thursday, but both took a small step back in the second session. A few more incomplete passes, but no interceptions on the day.
I like what Garoppolo has shown thus far, but he does hold the ball for too long at times.
- The front seven showed a few different looks Friday, lining up in 4-3 and 3-4 alignments. It was interesting to see Rob Ninkovich and Chandler Jones line up at linebacker, with Ninkovich dropping into coverage a time or two. Jabaal Sheard looks solid, moving all over the formations.
- Malcolm Butler had a few solid pass break ups in coverage, drawing cheers from the crowd. Newly signed veteran cornerback, Tarell Brown, was very competitive in coverage.
- While the top-tier linebacker depth chart is very talented -- Jamie Collins, Dont'a Hightower and Jerod Mayo -- the team has some serious depth questions. James Morris got a lot of reps Thursday and Friday.
Rookie linebacker DJ Lynch hobbled off the field and did not finish the day with an apparent lower body injury.
Just a hunch, but I expect the Patriots to keep an eye on linebackers across the league that become available until now and the start of the season.
Also should be noted while Hightower and Mayo were out on the field for position drills, they were not participating in the team drills and spent time running during those sessions.
More notes coming tomorrow. For live updates, follow me on Twitter -- @PatriotsHaven
