Some new bits and pieces from around . before Ashley closes the shop..
DUSSAULT Patspropaganda
— As expected
Lawrence Guy stepped in for
Alan Branch with the top unit next to
Malcom Brown.
— Harvey Langi saw some time at outside linebacker and appeared to get thrown right into the mix.
—
Dion Lewis, he of silly bubble talk, appears to be the top kickoff return option at this point.
--
Jonathan Freeny — stepped right into the first “sub” defense alongside
Kyle Van Noy. It would appear he’s ahead on the depth chart over
Elandon Roberts.
BB from Patspulpit
-- Linebacker Kyle Van Noy broke up a pass intended for Gronkowski, while his position-mate Elandon Roberts made a lot of defensive calls with Hightower absent.
-- Undrafted rookie defensive tackle Josh Augusta was moving well throughout the session. The days of struggling with conditioning seem to be behind him.
-- Head coach Bill Belichick spent some time with linebacker Trevor Bates, trying to coach him up.
-- Cody Hollister looked better than his twin brother, making a slick, twisting catch in the end zone in 7 on 7 drills that drew loud cheers.
From
Camp Blogservations: Energetic Gronkowski dominates day 1
-- DE
Kony Ealy was on the field in sweats but did not take part in the workout. (so at least one guy manages to report that Ealy was there.. )
--
Dwayne Allen struggled at times catching the ball in the spring, including during one very rainy practice. But the veteran trade addition caught the ball well on the first day of camp and looked like a more potent option in the passing game.
--
David Harris took plenty of high-end reps at inside linebacker. The veteran actually had really tight coverage of Gillislee on one play.
--After dealing with a health issue during the spring,
Duron Harmon took reps in group/team action throughout the morning. He did spend some time riding the bike in the middle of the fields during a couple breaks in his work.
--During kickoff return work the first group included
Dion Lewis and
Matthew Slater as the off returner. That was followed by
Danny Amendola and
James White. The three top blockers in front of the turners were
James Develin,
Brandon King and
Geneo Grissom.
--Guys working off the edge to block the kicks included
Jonathan Jones, Coleman, Moore II,
D.J. Killings and
Dwayne Thomas.
--Depth at the center position will be an area to watch this summer. In pre-practice work those snapping the ball to the quarterbacks included starter
David Andrews as well as
Cole Croston,
Jason King and
Jamil Douglas.
(+Karras of course snapping for Jimmy)
--The second group of offensive linemen included, from left to right,
Cameron Fleming, Douglas, Karras, Croston and LaAdrian Waddle.
(So I guess we can consider Croston as a guard option - which was expected since they didn't bring new IOL guys after Barker and Ferris left.)
