Patriots News 7/28: Daily Team Notebook
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Some Patriots news on this Thursday:
– Day one of New England Patriots training camp is in the books and the team was back at work as they kicked things off on the practice fields behind Gillette Stadium on Wednesday. Second-year quarterback Mac Jones looked solid on day one of camp, with DeVante Parker being a player who also stood out as the two were productive down in the red zone. Parker hauled in several passes during 7-on-7s and 11-on-11s, with Jones showing an early connection with the former Dolphins receiver. One thing several players noticed was that the offense was simplified compared to past years, with Kendrick Bourne telling reporters on Wednesday that the offense “just feels faster”, which appears to be something they’re happy about.
– Jones said yesterday that one area they’re focusing on is trying to get off the ball faster and put stress on opposing defenses. “Yeah, I mean we have a long way to go but I think we are doing a lot of good things schematically to get up there and snap the ball a lot quicker,” said Jones. “We have really good skill players that get lined up to make those plays and obviously a great offensive line. It all goes down to distributing the ball whether that’s handing it off to the running back, throwing a swing to the right, throwing a deep ball, it doesn’t really matter what I’m doing if we can do it quickly, it puts stress on the defense. It makes everything harder. We’ve got a long way to go there. It’s day one, we got to do for eight months so we got to continue that but I think the idea in what we’re trying to get to is there.”
– One other thing that was notable on Wednesday was that multiple players were spotted wearing padded caps, which are apparently a new requirement to help reduce the risk of concussions during practice. According to WCVB, they’re known as a “Guardian Cap” and it’s a soft-shelled padded cap helping to decrease potential forces during head-to-head impacts. While any player can choose to wear them, this year they are now required for offensive and defensive linemen, as well as linebackers and tight ends during training camp. Team owners voted on them back in March, with this preseason being the first time they’ve been implemented on a broader level.
– Linebacker Josh Uche got a ringing endorsement from offensive lineman Trent Brown on Wednesday, with Brown saying that he believes a big year lies ahead for his teammate. “I think he’s going to have a breakout year,” offensive tackle said Brown via Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald. “(He) took strides over the offseason, he’s prepared through the course of the offseason. He’s ready to go.” Teammate Matt Judon was asked about Brown’s comments and he added that since Brown obviously is matched up against Uche, he should definitely have a good feel for his play. “Trent knows. He goes against him,” said Judon. “He sees the work that he’s putting in and he sees what he’s done so far. Josh was leading us in sacks at one point in time, so we’ve just gotta get him going. I think once he does that he’s going to be a really good player.”
– Bill Murray reportedly made an interesting change on Wednesday, with the former defensive tackle spotted getting some work along the offensive line. According to ProFootballFocus.com’s Doug Kyed, the change is essentially something they’re trying out with him and Kyed reports that any potential long-term change will depend on how he looks.
– Defensively, Terrance Mitchell was the first-string player opposite of Jalen Mills on Wednesday. Various players are expected to compete for that role, with Malcolm Butler and potentially rookie Jack Jones as possibilities. Butler faced off against Nelson Agholor on Wednesday with the veteran wideout reportedly hauling in a leaping pass over Butler, and the cornerback also reportedly struggled at times after being tested by multiple receivers. It may just be shaking off the rust, but it was a seemingly rough start for a player who many had high expectations for.
– It was a productive day overall for the offense, which ended the session with a touchdown pass from Jones to Damien Harris, which then saw the entire defense have to do push-ups. The defense has been the unit that most people have questions about, and it appears that we have a long way to go before we really get a sense of what this group will look like in the coming weeks.
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