At long last, football is back in Foxboro. Mandatory mini-camp kicked off for the New England Patriots on Tuesday. There were not many headlines to be made, but Kayshon Boutte and Christian Gonzalez showing up was a promising development.
Perhaps the most unforeseen lineup wrinkle came when rookie first-round draft pick Calbe Lomu was slotted in with the starting offensive line on his first day with the team.
Patriots offensive line today:
LT: Will Campbell
LG: Alijah Vera-Tucker
C: Jared Wilson
RG: Michael Onwenu
RT: Caleb Lomu
- No Morgan Moses today. Ben Brown replaced Vera-Tucker on most drives
Lomu played left tackle for the second team
— Mark Daniels (@ByMarkDaniels) June 9, 2026
Morgan Moses's injury is a mystery. Sources say he was seen leaving the building on Tuesday accompanied by a trainer. No further comment has been made by the New England front office or the veteran right tackle.
His absence comes after months of speculation that Moses could hang up his cleats following the team's Super Bowl loss. When New England traded up to get Lomu, it was apparent they were doing so with their sights set on the Utah native joining the Patriots starting rotation in 2027. It is now possible that the timeline could become accelerated.
When Lomu was not working with the first team -- as he did for the majority of the day -- he was playing left tackle on the second team.
Head coach Mike Vrabel has made it clear all offseason that second-year left tackle Will Campbell's position is not set in stone. Having the six-foot-six rookie understudy him could be a nice fire to light under the 22-year-old Campbell.
Interestingly enough, Campbell and Lomu were both born in 2004. If all works out for the two Patriots first-rounders, fans could be looking at their starting tackles for the next decade plus.
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