Given what's transpired over this offseason, it feels like forever since the Patriots raised the Lombardi Trophy after beating the Seahawks en-route to their fourth Super Bowl title back in February.
It's been an offseason riddled with an investigation that's lead to a suspension of quarterback Tom Brady, with little evidence to justify how the Super Bowl MVP could potentially be a spectator in week one in 2015. It's been a complete and total mess that's tarnished what should have been a relatively enjoyable offseason for the players and fans here in New England, but instead it's been a long road back to the return of football in Foxboro last week.
Last week's organized team activities signaled the start of a new season, returning a little normalcy to this football team and there were certainly some interesting things that came out of the sessions, which began last Tuesday. Here's a quick rundown of a few things we learned as the team started laying some of the groundwork for the upcoming season.
 Dobson reportedly looked good during the team's session on Friday. (USA TODAY Images) |
JONES, COLLINS, BUTLER AMONG THE ABSENCES:
According to published reports, missing from Friday's media portion of the practice were Ryan Wendell, Sebastian Vollmer, Jerod Mayo, Jordan Richards, Matthew Slater, Sealver Siliga, Chandler Jones, AJ Derby, Jamie Collins, Alan Branch, Malcolm Butler, Brandon LaFell, Dont'a Hightower and Chris Jones among the players not on hand.
Last week's sessions weren't mandatory, and one notable absence was Butler coming off of his Super Bowl heroics. In his absence Logan Ryan was among players who saw increased reps, and he's going to be a player to keep an eye on as he heads into his third season as the team begins sorting out the loss of free agents Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner, as well as the release of Kyle Arrington and Alfonzo Dennard.
Newcomer Brandon Spikes got some increased reps with so many linebackers being absent, with Hightower (who is also recovering from offseason shoulder surgery), Mayo (who is also coming back from knee surgery), and Collins not reportedly on hand Friday. Spikes seems relatively upbeat now that he's back in New England, and his history of jarring hits should make him a fun player to watch this season if he's able to have a strong camp and re-establish a role in the defense.
With LaFell absent both Aaron Dobson and Brian Tyms got some additional reps, and most reports seem to indicate that Dobson looked strong during Friday' session. Obviously it's a little early to make any real determinations, but most reports have said Dobson has worked hard this offseason, so hopefully this might end up finally being a good year for the 6'3" receiver out of Marshall.
SLATER TALKS ABOUT THE OFFSEASON:
Special teams captain Matthew Slater has been around for a while and he's used to the fact New England's seasons usually run well into the postseason, although fortunately this time around he walked away a Super Bowl champion. Now it's all about trying to hit the reset button as he heads into a new season, and he said on Thursday that they have to approach it that way because last year is now in the rear view mirror.
"Nobody cares what we did last season," Slater said via MassLive.com. "Obviously we have a bunch of new guys here, guys that weren't here last year. It's a new team, a new season. If we don't approach it as such, we're going to have some problems."
Slater wasn't on hand Friday but his comments on Thursday are somewhat telling as he talked about how important it was to recharge and get himself ready to go all-in at the start of each new year.
"I think it's so important to recharge physically and mentally," Slater said. "If you don't, I think it can become problematic so it's important to have that downtime and then transition to the next season."
SPLIT REPS FOR THE QB'S:
Tough to take much away from Friday's outing, with Tom Brady and Jimmy Garoppolo splitting the snaps and getting equal work in. Both reportedly were sharp during 11-on-11 drills, with Brady completing 7-of-11 passes while Garroppolo went 8-for-11, including a touchdown to Fred Davis at the end of the drill.
One thing mentioned by ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss is the fact that of all the back-ups the Patriots have had in recent years, Garoppolo appears to finally be the answer they've been looking for behind Brady. That's good news considering that ever since Matt Cassel was dealt years ago, there wasn't a lot of confidence in previous back-ups Brian Hoyer or Ryan Mallett. Now it seems like New England may have a guy who can perform well enough in his absence, which might, unfortunately, be necessary should his suspension cause him to miss time.
A DANGEROUS TANDEM:
There has been plenty of discussion about free agent acquisition Scott Chandler this offseason, who gives the Patriots a major weapon opposite Rob Gronkowski at the tight end position. The media got a glimpse of him Friday, with the 6'7" Chandler standing out in a big way during the team's session.
The thought of what the two could do together is certainly enticing, and while it's tough to take much away from what happens this early in the process, it's still hard not to be a little intrigued about what the future might hold for the two this season. This is a pretty strong offensive group in general that the Patriots will be fielding in 2015 since they're returning a pretty productive unit from 2014 and if everyone's healthy, one would expect they should be able to do some serious damage again this time around as well.
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