Patriots Cancel Final Minicamp Practice

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3 months ago at 11:18 am ET

Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick appears to be pleased with the progress his club has made over the last few days, with Belichick reportedly canceling the final day of minicamp practice.

While he did a similar thing last year by releasing players early, this time around, things seem to be overall heading in a better direction, and the morale appears also to be much better.

This will give both the players and coaches one final month off before the Patriots get back to work when training camp begins at the end of next month.

It’s also worth noting that free agent wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins is in town for a visit both Wednesday and Thursday, with the move to cancel practice also allowing Belichick and the coaching staff additional time to potentially put together a convincing enough experience to get Hopkins to consider joining the club heading into the 2023 season.

Hopkins reportedly spent last weekend visiting the Titans down in Nashville, with a visit that apparently went well. Hopkins does have a relationship with Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, with the two spending time together during their tenures in Houston.

Hopkins was there from 2013-2019, with Vrabel having previously been a linebackers coach from 2014-2016, and later as a defensive coordinator in 2017 for the Texans.

Whether or not Belichick can sell Hopkins on coming to New England will certainly be interesting to follow, which will likely make the next couple of days worth keeping an eye on.

Portions of the above appeared in this morning’s Patriots notebook, which features a variety of news and notes.