Patriots News 6/1: Daily Team Notebook

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10 months ago at 10:00 am ET

Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

Some news and notes this morning as I change this up a bit. Some people have asked to shorten this up, so we’ll try out a new format people will hopefully like better. This will probably be a bit of a work in progress, so thanks to those who took time to provide feedback and I’ll continue working on improving it.

QUICK HITCHES:

– Based on various media reports, it was a quiet day in Foxboro as Tuesday’s practice session marked the second of OTAs. The session was fairly uneventful, with New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick taking things relatively easy on his players coming off Memorial Day Weekend. The practice reportedly ran less than an hour, with not a lot of competitive reps happening between the offense and defense. Reports seem to point to the fact that Monday was more of an installation type of session, with the offense and defense each working separately on two separate fields.

– Attendance-wise, there were a fair amount of players missing on Monday. Isaiah Wynn was again not present but this time, Trent Brown was also absent. That left the team without either of its two starting tackles. Also reportedly not spotted were Davon Godchaux, Anfernee Jennings, Quinn Nordin, Byron Cowart, as well as rookies Chasen Hines and Andrew Stueber.

– One other notable name not present was veteran running back James White, who was involved in the previous practice that was open to the media but wasn’t there Tuesday. The fact he was out is curious as he continues recovering from his hip injury. Hopefully, he hasn’t suffered any type of setback but it remains something to keep an eye on.

– On the other side, Adrian Phillips and Lawrence Guy were both on hand after not being seen last week. Matthew Judon remains sitting this one out, although again, these are voluntary and one would have to believe he’ll be back in Foxboro when the upcoming mandatory sessions begin. Raekwon McMillan was also not spotted.

– N’Keal Harry continues staying away which obviously continues to signal that all is not well on that front and that his days continue to be numbered.

– Watching video of rookie Tyquan Thornton, he’s fast off the line and fairly smooth in his movements. It’s obvious the quarterbacks are still getting used to him because he often has to slow up to catch the ball on routes, but he’s definitely as advertised when it comes to his speed.

– Mac Jones continues to show nice touch on his deep throws and does seem to have a little more zip and it looks like he’s stepping into his throws a bit more. It’s hard to judge a whole lot based on what limited footage there has been, but that’s an area where he seemed to be lacking a little bit in 2021, especially late in the year. His footwork definitely looks a little better, which clearly shows how much work he’s put in this offseason.

– Hunter Henry looks to be in great shape and made a nice over-the-shoulder grab from Jones on Tuesday.

– Rookie Cole Strange continued getting work at the left guard spot, which continues from everything reported by the media last week.

– Tight end Devin Asiasi reportedly suffered an injury to his left hand on Tuesday, which appeared to be an issue as he struggled to catch passes after it happened.

– Belichick reportedly spent the session working with the offense and was very hands-on, including being spotted dropping into a zone coverage with receivers coach Ross Douglas to emphasize a point. While Matt Patricia was the one calling the plays, Belichick continues to be heavily involved early on.

EXTRA POINTS:

– Belichick added some additional weight to people who believe linebacker Josh Uche will be more involved in 2022. “We’ll see how he does,” said Belichick when asked about him Tuesday. “I agree, I think he is a big piece of our defense. We’ll see exactly what he turns out to be.”

– Donta Hightower, who remains a free agent, drew some praise from Belichick on Tuesday when asked to compare Uche’s versatility to Hightower. “It’s a stretch to compare almost anybody to Hightower,” said Belichick. “You’re talking about one of the best linebackers that’s ever played here.” That’s about as big of a compliment as a player can get, which tells us how much Belichick obviously values the veteran linebacker.

– When asked about whether or not he’d welcome Hightower back, Belichick turned the discussion back, saying, “Let’s talk about the players that are on the team right now.”

– One reporter asked Belichick about Malcolm Butler, who obviously sat out last season. According to Belichick, Butler has stepped back in and looks just like he did when he was here previously. “Malcolm works hard, like he always has, very competitive, out there scrapping for balls,” said Belichick. ‘His aggressiveness, play style … we’re not in pads, but yeah, looks like it’s about the same.”