FOXBOROUGH — There was a lot of good, a little bad, and some nasty in Will Campbell’s first career joint practice.
As he has all summer, the Patriots first-rounder repped at left tackle for meaningful team periods. Faced with a new opponent for the first time, Campbell held his own.
Though pass protection has been touch-and-go for the rookie this summer, he was strong in 11-on-11 periods against the Commanders. Matched up with former Patriots captain Deatrich Wise, Javon Kinlaw, and Dorance Armstrong, Campbell didn’t surrender a sack during team periods, as Drake Maye went 15-for-21 and the Patriots offense moved the ball well.
“Very strong guy at the point of attack,” Wise said. “I met him in the run game a little bit, we kind of stalemated, ball went the other way, but great player. I think he has a very high ceiling.”
In 1-on-1 pass rush drills, all three of Campbell’s reps came against Wise, and they appeared to split them, 1-1-1. On the first, Campbell gave some ground but, ultimately seemed to quell a bull rush from Wise. It looked like a draw. Next, Wise tried to rip to the inside, Campbell got him off balance and threw him onto the grass. Then on the last rep, Wise pulled past Campbell and cruised to the quarterback for a decisive victory.
“Really, really good at using his hands,” Wise said. “He does a good job of effort and he told me on the field (that) he just wants to get better and learn, and everything that he does is a lesson. So kudos to.”
The most memorable part of Campbell’s day was the nastiness near the end.
Notorious for protecting his teammates and playing through the whistle at LSU, Campbell displayed some of that tenacity when a fight broke out in an 11-on-11 period. After TreVeyon Henderson took a Commanders blitzer to the ground, the two began tussling on the turf. Mike Vrabel bolted over to try to break it up, but Campbell saw what was happening too, and promptly dove on the Washington player to get him off Henderson.
A massive pile ensued, Vrabel was bloodied, and everybody knew that Campbell had his teammate’s back.
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