Absent: Christian Gonzalez, Marcellus Dial, Tyler Davis, K’Lavon Chaisson, Jahlani Tavai, Sidy Sow, Caedan Wallace, Kendrick Bourne, Morgan Moses, and Jaquelin Roy
Gonzalez, Moses, and Bourne were at practice but not participating
Carlton Davis did participate in the walkthrough but is not expected to play against the Commanders in either the joint practice or game on Friday
Javon Baker had some plays with the 1st team and was only targeted once but this indicates he has risen up the depth chart ahead of Polk and Chism. Bourne was out but it appears that Baker has jumped ahead of him too.
Session only last an hour and fifteen minutes. There were no competitive plays in this session
Concentration was on situational football, including a 2:00 drill and even had a Hail Mary thrown in.
Vederian Lowe was the LT on the 2nd team. Marcus Bryant and Demontrey Jacobs switched out at RT in Moses absence.
Khyiris Tonga and Joshua Farmer were the backup DTs. This is a jump for Farmer.
Five up and Five Down from First Two Weeks of Training Camp
We have completed 11 practices before the Washington Commanders come in Wednesday for a joint practice and a Pre-Season game.
Five Up
K’Lavon Chaisson – Chaisson has been dominant rushing the passer. It seems he has had multiple would-be sacks in each practice. The QBs are wearing Red Non-Contact jerseys so the pass rushers are not allowed to hit them. Otherwise, Chaisson would be racking up crazy sack totals. Is Chaisson that good or are our tackles that bad? I will say that Chaisson was trending up from last year with the Raiders. Chaisson had 4 sacks in his last 6 games of 2024. I also believe that he has benefited from the experienced coaching staff here in New England and a new philosophy that allows the Defensive Lineman to rush upfield. If he shows up in the Joint practice with this newfound pressure ability, he could end up as the steal of Free Agency.
Kayshon Boutte – He has gone from being a trade candidate prior to the draft to the starting X receiver. Maybe his improvement last season wasn’t a fluke? He has gone from a player that was fighting to make the team, to a potential starter. I will add that when Mack Hollins came off PUP, he slotted immediately into the starting X position. However, Boutte still saw considerable playing time with the first team as Hollins was moved to different WR positions. Last season he had 43 receptions on 68 targets and 3 TDs. He was once considered a roster bubble guy, but is now looking more like a potential WR3
Stephon Diggs – Diggs recovery from a torn ACL just 8 months ago has been remarkable. This feat by itself is incredible. He looks like he hasn’t missed a beat. Diggs gives the Patriots a true Alpha receiver. The other key is that Diggs has been mentoring the younger receivers on the team. His use has been widespread, playing out wide and in the slot.
Drake Maye – He had not thrown an interception through 8 practices. He threw two in the in-stadium scrimmage. In an early practice he should have thrown a pick on an overthrow but Jabrill Peppers dropped it. This was one of Mayes issues from last year, having to many Turnover Worthy Plays. If Maye has had a down day, he has consistently bounced back strong. The team has worked on specific area such as goal line, third down and throwing deep. Each has higher and lower levels of success. When throwing near the goal line, the defense is compacted and doesn’t have to defend a bigger area. Deep passes have a reduced chance of completion. Maye has been taking what the Defense is giving him. One big drawback is the three fumbled snaps under Center. I don’t know who is to blame for this. Is it Drake Mayes fault for pulling out to quick or is the Centers fault? Jared Wilson is a rookie with only one year playing Center. Maye had never taken a snap under center before he was drafted by the Patriots.
Jared Wilson – In five practices, Wilson, who missed all the OTAs and Mini Camp, has secured the Left Guard competition. Wilson dominated his 1-on-1 drills against Christian Barmore and Milton Williams. He also took snaps at both guard and center without any fumbling issues, which had been a problem in earlier practices. Considering that Garrett Bradbury is banged up, Wilson’s versatility pushes him into legitimate starting center discussions.
5 Down
Cole Strange – He has gone from competing for the starting Left Guard position to third team Center. He isn’t even the backup guard anymore. I think his days are numbered and won’t make the team.
Will Campbell – Chad Graf from the Athletic had this to say about Campbell. “All eyes are on him every practice, which is a tough spot for a rookie,” Graff wrote of Campbell. “So far, he’s been about what you’d expect from a rookie. He has some strong moments, particularly in the running game. But there have been struggles in the passing game. He’s been beaten for a sack in just about every practice, which isn’t great considering he’s usually on the field each practice for only 15 or so passing plays in full-team drills.
“He tends to get beaten to the inside after oversetting, and it probably doesn’t help that the Pats don’t yet know who their left guard is next to him. Still, extrapolate those numbers, and that’s allowing two sacks each NFL game if you throw the ball 30 times. Not great.”
He has been beat at least once in every practice. Going into the Training Camp I thought Canpbell would be mediocre. Last season only two rookie OL had ratings better than Vederian Lowe. That was Joe Alt and Roger Rosengarten and they both played Right Tackle. So I figured that Campbell would end up 32nd out of 64 starters. That wouldn’t be too bad. However, the sack per practice is concerning. We will really see this week when he goes up against Washington’s Pass Rushers.
Evan Lazar has stated that Campbell’s run blocking has been superior. Is it Campbell or a poor run stuffing Defensive Line? We will find out Wednesday in the Joint Practice.
Morgan Moses – Has not come out of the gate quickly. His reps in practice have been limited only because he is 34-years-old and veteran of 13 seasons. He has had one full practice. The alarming part of those practices is that he has been beaten like a rug. If you think Campbell has been bad, Moses has been worse. I think fans would call him a turnstile so far. He is coming back from a knee injury in week 3 last season versus the Patriots. He played all season with the knee injury and had off-season surgery to clean it out.
Milton Williams – The highest paid defensive lineman in the league gave the Patriots fans some hope for a potential dominating defense. However, I haven’t read much about Williams play in Training Camp. He was beaten by Jared Wislon in on-on-ones, and you haven’t heard his name mentioned about getting sacks. Note he may be providing pressure, but we may not know about it. The upcoming joint practice with Washington will tell the story.
Injured Players – Getting injured in camp is a bummer for these players that have worked so hard to make a team. Brock Lampe was an undrafted player that had perhaps the best chance to make the team. Lampe has been placed on IR. Josh McDaniels is one of the few Offensive Coordinators to use a Fullback in their arsenal**. Marcellus Dial** had an apparent knee injury and he’s out for the year.
Yasir Durant was signed from the UFL. He was selected as a UFL All-League LT this past spring. Durant played for the Patriots previously in 2021 when they traded for him from the Kansas City Chiefs, giving up a 2022 7th round pick for him. He was waived the following year at the cutdown date. He played in 7 games and started one game in 2021. The Patriots brought him in because they were unhappy with what they have seen so far from the Tackles. He has been placed on IR as well.
Don’t be surprised to see either of these players reach an injury settlement. If that happens, the team can re-sign them once cleared to play. Brock Lampe signed a 3 year, $2,980,000 contract with the New England Patriots, including $15,000 signing bonus, $55,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $993,333. In 2025, Lampe will earn a base salary of $490,000 and a signing bonus of $15,000, while carrying a cap hit of $495,000 and a dead cap value of $55,000 according to Spotrac.
Defense versus Offense
Is our Defense that good and particularly the pass rush or is our Offensive Line that bad? K’Lavon Chaisson and Keion White have wreaked havoc on the Offensive Line. It’s well documented the woes of the Offensive Line so far in Training Camp. The proof will be how they perform in the joint practices against competition that is not your own teammates. If the pass rushers are not getting the same type of pressure, then it may be just that the Offensive Line is still that bad. The joint practice with the Commanders will tell us more than the actual pre-season game on Friday.
About Mark Morse
Merrimack Valley native and lifelong fan of the New England Patriots. My earliest memories of the Patriots were attending as a child with my dad, the off-season practice at Phillips Academy. I was at the Patriots game at Harvard Stadium in 1970 where Bob “Harpo” Gladieux was called out of the stands by the stadium announcer over the PA to play in the game. Analyzing the draft since ESPN first started to televise it in 1980 and former writer for the Lowell Sun Newspaper.
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