Friday Patriots Headlines

The big news of Thursday's morning session was the fact that Wes Welker took part in contact drills, with Nick Underhill of MassLive pointing out that he took a shot from Jerod Mayo, but popped right back up after the hit.

Jeff Howe of NESN.com reports that there were actually two hits delivered on a couple of different players by Mayo - both of which knocked Welker down.

Glen Farley of the Patriot Ledger has an article on wide receiver Torry Holt, who is being pushed hard by the younger guys as he tries to make the team, but so far continues to hold his own.

"I have to work harder now," said Holt. "I have to work every day very, very hard with a purpose, with a level of energy, with a passion. These guys out here are really good. They're young, they're smart.
"In the classroom, I've had to evolve in terms of recognizing coverages early to get myself an opportunity to get open before the ball is even snapped. Knowing that I'm not 21, 22-years old any more, I have to beat these guys with my mind a lot of times."

Farley also has an article on Taylor Price, who despite his late start has performed well so far through one week of training camp.

The Worcester Telegram has an article on Darius Butler, who is being pushed by rookie Devin McCourty for the starting job opposite Leigh Bodden.

Shalise Manza Young looks at the safety position, and points out that with four players battling for two spots, it isn't a bad problem to have as the team looks for who will emerge as the starters at those positions.

Mark Farinella of the Attleboro Sun Chronicle has an article this morning on Patriots defensive lineman Ron Brace, who after one week of camp still isn't on the field because he's still yet to pass his conditioning test.

Ian Rapoport of the Boston Herald also has an article on Brace, who earlier this year had spoken about being in better shape in hopes of contributing this season. Unfortunately it appears he's not off to a good start.

Farinella also has an article on runningback Fred Taylor, who after 12 seasons in the NFL is still working just as hard at trying to be as 'perfect' as possible.

Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald has an article on Randy Moss, who is in the final year of his contract and is planning to "erupt" this season.

Tom Pedula has an article in USA Today looking at the fact that although New Enlgand still sees themselves as Super Bowl contenders, he wonders if they still indeed are good enough to battle for a championship.

Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com looks at where some of the younger players could potentially end up on the roster in the coming weeks.

Robert Lee of the Providence Journal has an article this morning on Julian Edelman, who after having a full season under his belt has an advantage over some of the younger guys who are fighting for a roster spot.

Wondering which players have participated in each session, and which ones have been missing time? Jeff Howe of NESN.com has an entry that shows the entire attendance report, listing exactly how many practices those players have missed.

Howe also looks at the fact that Belichick has gone relatively easy on the players, cancelling one session and changing a couple others to either walkthroughs - or ones without full pads and wonders if it's been an added benefit for the players.

Howe also has an entry on Nick Kazcur, who's injury has given teammate Ryan Wendall more reps in practice - and an opportunity to earn a roster spot.

Jim Donaldson has an article this morning looking at how deep the Patriots are at certain positions, and says that they're not very deep at all at some of them.

Safety Patrick Chung joined Chris Price and John Rooke yesterday morning on WEEI, and Jerry Spar has notes from the interview for anyone who missed it.

Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston points out that yesterday it was Brian Hoyer who aced the bucket drill, which is when quarterbacks drop back and lob deep passes in hopes of dropping them into steel barrels on the field.

THURSDAY PRACTICE NOTES:

Afternoon Session:

(Limited Notes since the practice was moved inside)

Patriots Training Camp Blog: Heading Indoors - WBZ.com
Camp report from Thursday afternoon session - WEEI.com
Several LBs vying for inside track; Thu PM Notes - Patriots.com

Morning Session:

Edelman in the running; Thursday AM notes - Patriots.com
Traning Camp AM Practice Notes - NECN
Thursday Morning Practice Notes - WEEI.com
Quick hits from camp session #14 - Patriots.com
Patriots practice 14: Observations - ESPNBoston.com