Wednesday Patriots Notebook 9/3: Gonzalez Sits Out, Preparation Gets Underway For Raiders
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Some Patriots news and notes on this Wednesday afternoon:
1) No Gonzalez Wednesday: The first day of what is normally the start of pregame preparation arrived for the New England Patriots on Wednesday, and it sounds like the team could potentially be without Christian Gonzalez on Sunday against the Raiders.
Head coach Mike Vrabel told reporters that the third-year defensive back would be an unlikely participant at practice, which now officially puts his status heading into Sunday in question.
“I wouldn’t say that,” said Vrabel when asked if Gonzalez wasn’t out there today, if he won’t be available this weekend. “He’s continuing to work, and he’ll do some stuff on the side, but I’m not going to rule anybody out.”
“We’ll continue to work and treat and make sure that we’re doing everything that we can to help him, and he’s doing everything he can to get back out on the field. That’s the only update I have right now.”
When asked how much being able to practice would affect Vrabel being comfortable in putting him out there, the Patriots coach said Gonzalez has done a good job with the mental preparation, and he’s been pleased with him from that standpoint.
“I mean, I do like where he’s at from an engagement standpoint,” said Vrabel. “We’ve been through this with other players and like where he’s at from that standpoint. In the meetings, locked in. Following along a practice, which is difficult to think that a player that’s not in there can follow along. I’ve been through that as a player and a coach, and I think he’s done a nice job of being able to do that.”
Gonzalez was the lone player missing from Wednesday’s session, with Phil Perry reporting Gonzalez did some work on the stationary bike on the upper field while the rest of his teammates worked on the lower field.
Vrabel was asked if it was important for players to get to 100% before they come back, but Vrabel added that it went a little bit beyond that.
“I’ll remind you what we talked about as far as when I try to make decisions about players and returning,” explained Vrabel. “One, can they make it worse? And can they, two, protect themselves? We can all say what we want about this game, but, you know what I mean? It’s violent. Can you protect yourself? And can you do your job up to the standard that we expect and that the player is used to?”
“So, those are the things that I’ve tried to use when making decisions. Maybe I’ll add some to that, but that’s what I’ve tried to use in my other experience in this position.”
2) Not much to work off of: The Patriots are about to face a Raiders team with a completely different staff than in previous years, which certainly changes the approach a bit.
With head coach Pete Carroll at the helm and several former coordinators and assistants, there’s obviously no regular season film to work with based on what this staff might do. Vrabel explained that the big thing in this situation is to try and prepare for various concepts as his team gets ready for this weekend, and then they’ll simply have to deal with everything else when the time comes.
“Well, I mean, they have a first-year defensive coach with a coordinator that’s in there and done stuff,” said Vrabel. “And then they have a new offensive coordinator who’s been in the NFL and has also come from The Ohio State University. And so that’s a pretty unique, I think, blend of what we have to try to anticipate.”
“We’re not going to be… There’s going to be numerous plays in the game that we won’t have seen or we won’t have run in practice in this preparation. That’s how it goes. I mean, that’s going to be like that every week. But just trying to get themes and concepts ideas of what they may want to do defensively with Pat [Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham] and Pete’s style and scheme, and then what they may want to do from offensively from what Chip’s [Offensive coordinator Chip Kelly] done in the past in the NFL, what he’s done in college, and what Gino [Smith] likes. Certainly, quarterbacks in this league like things, and we’ll get things added. So I’m sure there’ll be things that he’s liked that they’ll run from plays he liked in Seattle.”
He was then asked about the overlap in various systems, and whether trying to also anticipate how Las Vegas might react to what they’re doing might be a factor. However, Vrabel explained the importance of not going overboard, with being fundamentally sound being the bigger point of emphasis for his football team.
“The one thing you don’t want to be is too cute, certainly in week one or at any time, and think, ‘Well, they know and they think we’re going to do this, so then we’re going to do this,'” said Vrabel. “I think we have to be really sound and use our rules. If we see something that’s new, we have to keep our composure and keep our poise and figure out ways to make it work.”
3) First Season Opener For Maye: This is certainly a big game for Drake Maye, which marks the first time he’s been the quarterback to open the season for his team here in the NFL.
Last year, it was Jacoby Brissett who was out there in Week 1 in what was ultimately a 16-10 win over the Bengals to begin the 2024 season. He would go on to lose his next four games before Maye ultimately took over in Week 6 against Houston, but Maye only managed one win over the course of his remaining starts where he played a full game.
A win this weekend would match that total and give Maye and the rest of his team a little momentum with a trip to Miami on deck for the following Sunday.
This time around, he’ll have a little more help than he had a year ago. The addition of veteran receiver Stefon Diggs and running back TreVeyon Henderson give him two explosive weapons that should certainly help, with rookie wideout Kyle Williams likely to also play a factor. Mack Hollins and Kayshon Boutte also looked terrific during this past preseason, and they’re at least more dangerous on that side of the ball compared to who they had in 2024.
The other question is going to be how the offensive line performs, with both rookie Will Campbell and veteran Morgan Moses likely having to battle against Las Vegas’ Maxx Crosby.
Moses has been a player who has seen his snaps managed all summer and will likely be called upon to play 60 minutes this weekend. With that in mind, Vrabel didn’t seem overly concerned about that part of things heading into the opener on Sunday.
“I’m confident,” said Vrabel. “I think Mo has worked extremely hard and done exactly what we’ve asked him to do and has been involved in a lot of their reps.”
Vrabel added that he’s been pleased with what he’s seen from his quarterback off the field, and now it’s up to Maye to take all of that hard work out across the white lines on Sunday.
“Well, I think his command in the meetings,” said Vrabel. “I think the reach to the locker room, the reach to the players, the stuff off the field, being engaged in that way and knowing how important that particular position is in all three phases on special teams and the impact that he can make as a quarterback.”
4) Not well-traveled: One bit of good news for this season is the fact that when it comes to how much the Patriots will have to travel in 2o25, they’re actually on the lower end of things compared to the rest of the league.
Boston Herald writer and Bookies.com betting analyst Bill Speros put together a good chart on the amount of miles temas will be traveling this season, and the Patriots came in 26th on that list, with the 7th fewest miles compared to the other 32 teams.
The top five teams consisted of NFC West and AFC West teams, with the Jaguars likely also appearing due to their overseas games. The Chargers led that list with 37,086 miles, followed by the Rams (34,832), Seattle (31,302), Jacksonville (29,006), and San Francisco (28,363).
The five lowest were the Packers (11,466), Lions (11,411), Ravens (10,647), Bills (10,546), and Bengals (8,753).
While New England does head to Miami next weekend, the team does have the luxury of playing three of its first four games at home before playing three-straight on the road. That stretch includes visits to Buffalo, New Orleans, and Tennessee, which will all come following two home games for the Patriots at Gillette Stadium against Pittsburgh and Carolina in Weeks 3, and 4, respectively.
Vrabel had some glowing words again for Marcus Jones, when asked about what he’s seen from him as a leader. “Really, by example, just the way … his practice habits, his professionalism, I would say, and then his performance on the field and what he does and how he plays,” said Vrabel. “Really like being around Marcus. I like the person who he is and the player that he is.” Jones was among six captains named for this season earlier this week. … Vrabel was asked about the tempo he was expecting with Chip Kelly running things for the Raiders on offense this weekend. “Well, I mean, it’s not… I don’t think it’s breakneck,” said Vrabel. “Maybe it will be. I mean, we’ll see. But I think it’s a little different than probably what it was in Philadelphia. And if it isn’t, we’ll have to be ready for it.” … Vrabel was also asked about the fact this is the first game these guys are going to be playing, and how that might affect substitutions. “Everybody will have to play,” said Vrabel. “Everybody has to play every game and be ready to play. The ones that are in condition and they’re playing the way that we expect them to, will stay in there. When they’re not, then they’ll have to get a break and put the next guy in there like we’ve always done.”
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