Some Patriots news and notes on this Monday:
1) The New England Patriots finished their last public practice of the year on Sunday in front of a large crowd behind Gillette Stadium, with fans getting their final look at the club before the season opener, which is just a little less than a month from now.
Monday’s practice is closed to the public, with the team getting set to head out to Minnesota ahead of two joint practices this week against the Vikings. Those sessions are set for Wednesday and Thursday, with the club then next hitting the field for a rare Saturday afternoon game against the Vikings at 1:00pm.
Head coach Mike Vrabel said on Sunday that Christian Gonzalez will be in Minnesota, but he’ll only be a spectator. Vrabel was a little coy initially when asked about the defensive back, saying, “You might see him in Minnesota,” before adding, “Now, before you think I’m being funny, you’ll probably see Christian in Minnesota,” said Vrabel. “You won’t see him on the field, probably in a uniform. See how I did that? You’ll see him in Minnesota, but he probably won’t be practicing this week.”
Vrabel also added on wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk, “You won’t see Ja’Lynn Polk in Minnesota.”
One bit of good news on Polk is the fact that he wasn’t among the transactions on Sunday in terms of his possible placement on injured reserve. After sustaining an apparent shoulder injury Friday night, many wondered if that might potentially end his sophomore season, especially given that he went into the medical tent and then straight to the locker room.
The “no news is good news” essentially keeps the door open for his hopes of possibly being part of the team in 2025, however slim that might be.
2) Overall, we haven’t seen many transactions early in the preseason, at least when it comes to anything notable. We’ve seen players like Kyle Dugger and Cole Strange who have seemingly slipped down the depth chart, but it doesn’t feel like Vrabel has made any significant decisions in terms of either player potentially not being part of their plans in 2025 to this point.
Normally, if that’s the case, veterans are often let go sooner rather than later to give them a better chance to latch on elsewhere. When asked on Sunday if he might let anyone go that he doesn’t feel would be a part of this team, Vrabel said they’re not quite at that point yet.
“I think we’re so far away from that,” said Vrabel. “Me personally, I’m focused on just having another great day and continuing everything that we did on Friday. And as you could see, everybody that was healthy played in the game and gave those guys opportunities. And whether it was John Giles or Webby [Jeremiah Webb], the offensive linemen, some of those guys that we talked about that didn’t get to play or practice against Washington really did themselves well when they were given the opportunity.”
“So, I want to continue to reward those players that treat the team well and treat them the same way they treat the team. So as long as they’re here working and getting better, we’re going to practice them or eventually get them action in the game.”
The team did make several transactions on Sunday, adding running back Deneric Prince (Tulsa) and defensive end Jereme Robinson (Kansas). They also placed running back Lan Larison on injured reserve and waived defensive back Josh Minkins. According to the transaction report, Robinson tried out the same day that he was signed.
3) Undrafted free agent wideout Efton Chism continues to make his push for a roster spot, with the rookie coming up with another big day on Sunday.
One of his biggest plays of the day came against Marcus Jones in the end zone, with Chism leaping into the air and going up and over Jones, who was blanketing him, to make the grab for the touchdown.
He continues to put together a solid preseason. He finished as the team’s leading receiver against Washington on Friday night, hauling in 6 receptions on 8 targets for 50 yards, including a touchdown. He also tied Lan Larison for the team lead in receptions on third down with two and was a difficult match-up for most of the evening.
While there are still a couple of weeks in front of him, he’s certainly made a strong case for himself. If he can continue stacking good performances together, it would absolutely be hard to imagine him not making the team.
4) Some interesting notes on Sunday’s practice, Dugger was again behind rookie safety Craig Woodson, which continues to put his future in question. Strange also saw work on the right side of the line at guard, which now might put him in contention to back up Mike Onwenu.
Meanwhile, Caedan Wallace saw work at left guard, which seems to indicate that his transition to the interior part of the line will continue. He had seemed to possibly be a candidate at tackle given the time there he saw in 2024, but so far here this preseason, he’s been working primarily as a guard.
Kayshon Boutte’s strong camp continues. He logged a couple of touchdowns from Drake Maye again on Sunday, coming up with three catches on the four targets he saw during team drills. He continues to look like he’ll be among the last players standing in the top part of the receiver rotation, and his maturity heading into this preseason has certainly been notable compared to a year ago.
Odds and Ends
Vrabel was asked about the scrum he was involved in last week that left his cheek bloodied. That was something that apparently wasn’t brought up during the team meetings, but he said his guys did get a look at it during the position meetings. “I didn’t show the team,” said Vrabel. “They all looked at it, obviously, in their meeting rooms, because guys were laughing at me. But I realized that Will [Campbell] and I were thinking the same thing, just trying to get the second guy off, and TeVeyon [Henderson] and the rest of them. I just don’t want anything to happen to anybody. My job is to try to break those up, and I don’t mind doing it, and that’s how it went.” … Vrabel said on Sunday that when it comes to Maye running the football, he was pleased with what he saw in terms of both the 3rd down he converted and his touchdown, but making sure he protects himself remains a priority. “Yeah, we have to be able to protect ourselves as a quarterback on a football team,” said Vrabel. “At the yard markers, at the sideline near the line to gain, and especially the goal line. I just think the biggest thing is just don’t assume. Try to use the rules to your advantage and being able to slide. Whether you go feet first or whether you go head first, you’re still protected. Again, we want him to be aggressive, but just not reckless and put the ball or himself in harm’s way.” … On Larison’s injury, Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal reported that he suffered a broken foot, which is what ended what had been a pretty promising run for him … The Patriots have taken some hits as of late, with Hunter Henry and Christian Barmore both limited on Sunday. Also banged up were DJ James, Marcus Bryant, and Marte Mapu. … Rhamondre Stevenson was absent on Sunday, although there were no reports about why he was out. That led to Antonio Gibson seeing an increased workload in his absence. … Stefon Diggs had a big drop at the end of practice on a would-be touchdown. Probably not the way he hoped to finish the day, and he’ll get a chance to go back and possibly get some work where he started this week, having been drafted by the Vikings in the 5th round (146th overall) in 2015.
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
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To bad for Larison. Seemed he was going to have a role on Special teams and RB. The pats will need a4th guy as the season is grueling. Lampe likely would have seen action too at FB.