FOXBOROUGH – It appears as though Drake Maye and the Patriots passing game is in a slump.
After Friday’s preseason game, where Maye shone on his feet, Mike Vrabel noted the team’s passing game was something they could improve on.
That didn’t happen for the Patriots on the 13th day of training camp.
Sunday’s focus was in the red zone, and for Maye’s unit, it was a struggle against the team’s top defensive unit. The starting quarterback started the day 2-of-7. That included one drop. By the end, Maye finished 5-of-13 as he was nearly picked off, and two of his veteran receivers dropped catchable passes in the end zone.
The offensive unit also had a poor snap from center Garrett Bradbury. In the end, the Patriots starting defense outplayed the offense, finishing with seven pass breakups between 7-on-7s and 11-on-11 drills.
“It’s never as good, it’s never as bad as you think,” Patriots cornerback Alex Austin said. “But it’s always good to go out there and compete in the red zone.”
Maye didn’t struggle during the team’s 7-on-7 period, going 5-of-8 with touchdowns to Stefon Diggs, Mack Hollins, and Kayshon Boutte. Instead, it was during 11-on-11s where the passing game wasn’t in sync.
In the first period, Maye was nearly intercepted by rookie safety Craig Woodson, who couldn’t corral the ball on a pass to Boutte.
“It hit the ground, but I should’ve played it off,” Woodson said. “I should’ve made it look like I had it and ran the other way, so I definitely learned from that. Those types of situations, you gotta just play it off.”
In the first three full-team periods, Maye had passes broken up by Marcus Jones and Carlton Davis. Mack Hollins also dropped a pass in the end zone.
Maye started the final full-team period well, completing three passes with two to DeMario Douglas and one to Kayshon Boutte. Although that streak also saw an errant snap from Bradbury.
This drill saw the offense play against the clock. With time expiring, the offense got into the red zone with 16 seconds left. Maye’s final three passes fell incomplete as his attempt to Hollins went out of bounds, and Jones deflected the next pass intended for Hollins.
With one second remaining, Maye found a wide-open Diggs in the end zone. However, the veteran receiver dropped the ball, ending a difficult day for the offense.
That wasn’t the case for the Patriots backup offense.
Joshua Dobbs finished 9-of-12 on Sunday. The veteran quarterback hit Hollins, Efton Chism III, and Cole Fotheringham for touchdowns.
Here are the main takeaways:
Chism has play of the day
Chism is doing everything he can to secure a roster spot.
After shining in last week’s preseason opener against the Washington Commanders, the undrafted rookie upped his game on Sunday. Chism caught two touchdowns in the Patriots 7-on-7 period. He added two more catches in full-team drills, and that included a jaw-dropping 1-handed catch.
During the team’s final 11-on-11 period, Dobbs threw the ball up the back left corner of the end zone. That’s when Chism turned and jumped over slot cornerback Marcus Jones. The rookie hauled in the pass with one hand, falling to the ground and securing the touchdown.
What made the play more impressive was that Jones had perfect coverage on Chism.
“It was good coverage. He just made a play,” Woodson said. “Those times, you’re just like, ‘Hey, it’s good coverage on the defense, good play on offense. That’s what it was. You watch it and say, ‘Hey, that was a good play.’”
Chism led the Patriots last week with six catches on eight targets for 50 yards and a touchdown against the Commanders.
With roster cuts coming at the end of this month, Chism is making a charge for a roster spot in a crowded receiver depth chart. The Eastern Washington product is battling for one of the final depth chart spots with Javon Baker, Kendrick Bourne, and Ja’Lynn Polk.
The last two times the Patriots were on the field, Chism has stuck out more than anyone.
Safety depth shuffle
It’s always noteworthy when a veteran player, on a big contract, isn’t playing with the starters.
That was the case on Sunday for Kyle Dugger.
During the 2024 offseason, Dugger signed a 4-year, $58 million contract with the Patriots. That included $32.5 million in guaranteed money. This season, Dugger has a $15.264 million cap hit.
That’s why it was surprising to see him with the second-team defense in Sunday’s practice. Dugger played next to safety Marcus Epps while the top unit featured safeties Jabrill Peppers, Jaylinn Hawkins, and the rookie, Woodson.
Woodson, drafted in the fourth round, almost had the defensive play of the day with a near interception. He said Dugger and the other veterans have been helpful to him.
“It’s been good,” Woodson said. “Those guys have been in the league for a long time, so just learning from them, asking them questions, being able to hear how they think and process the game. It helps me as a young guy.”
It’ll be interesting to see how this story unfolds this summer.
Due to Dugger’s contract, it doesn’t make sense for the Patriots to cut the veteran. If they did, they would be stuck with $14.25 million dead money. However, if the Patriots were to trade Dugger, they’d save $10.764 million while incurring $4.5 million in dead money.
Keeping Dugger also makes sense. The Patriots have solid depth at the safety position. If they were to move on from the veteran, it could mean keeping someone like Epps or Dell Pettus on the safety depth chart.
Vrabel on the fight
Mike Vrabel has never been one to shy away from a fight.
That was seen last week during the Patriots joint practice session with the Washington Commanders.
During a full-team period, TreVeyon Henderson picked up a blitz against a Commanders player. When the two hit the ground, they began to fight. That’s when Vrabel dove in and tried to separate the two players. That’s also when Will Campbell dove in to protect his teammate.
The result was Vrabel getting a laceration on the right side of his face. When he was pulled out of the scrum, the Patriots coach was bleeding.
Vrabel said he didn’t show the team the film from that play during a team meeting, but noted it made the rounds in their position rooms.
“I didn’t show the team. They all looked at it, obviously, in their meeting rooms because guys were laughing at me,” Vrabel said on Sunday. “I realized that Will and I were thinking the same thing, just trying to get the second guy off and TreVeyon, and they’re wrestling around – 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 kind of how it went.”
When he was a player, Vrabel once got into a fight during his first padded practice as a rookie with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Although he wasn’t the one fighting last week, Patriots players took notice – and said they were impressed with their coach.
After Sunday’s practice, Campbell was asked about his role in the fight, and said it was simple.
“Protect your teammates,” Campbell said. “That’s all I gotta say about it.”
Campbell made a strong push in debut
Campbell wasn’t perfect in his debut against the Commanders, but it was close.
The Patriots first-round pick played 14 offensive snaps, starting at left tackle. He came off the field when Maye’s night was over against Washington. Among the notable plays the rookie had, Campbell delivered multiple crushing blocks where he pushed the defender back yards and didn’t stop until that player was on the ground.
“I think it’s very important. Not just for me. That’s something we preach for our whole team. We want to set the tone the way that we play,” Campbell said. “I wasn’t the only guy doing that. Everybody was out there, finishing, flying around. I think that showed. We’re going to keep building. A good block to start on.”
During Henderson’s 18-yard run, the Patriots ran the ball behind Campbell. On that play, he drove back Commanders cornerback Noah Igbinoghene nearly 20 yards before pushing him to the ground.
The rookie had multiple moments like that in his brief preseason debut. He said the key was not to get too high after making one good play.
“Honestly, after you do it, you’ve kind of just have to get up, put it behind you, and go to the next play,” Campbell said. “It’s kind of like that. Leave it all behind. It could be a good play. If you have 60 plays in a game, 59 of them could be good. One bad could ruin a night. It’s really nothing – you don’t get too high, don’t get too low. You just try to put your best foot forward each and every play.”
Kicker competition
Parker Romo’s hot streak continues.
The veteran kicker was perfect in his Patriots preseason debut, hitting a 57-yard field goal and three extra point attempts. On Sunday, he went 4-for-4 in a tightly contested kicker battle.
Romo is 32-of-33 through 13 days of camp.
Rookie Andy Borregales missed an attempt around 39 yards on Sunday. He finished 3-of-4 and is 30-of-34 this summer. The sixth-round pick was also perfect against Washington, hitting a 22-yard attempt and three extra points.
Attendance
Edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson returned to practice on Sunday. His impact was felt during 11-on-11 drills as he would’ve likely sacked Maye had contact been allowed.
Carlton Davis also participated more than he had all summer. Sunday marked his first fully-padded practice. Vrabel said that’ll continue throughout this week when the Patriots head to Minnesota for joint practices. Davis finished with a pass breakup on Maye while covering Boutte in the end zone.
The Patriots were missing Christian Gonzalez, Ja’Lynn Polk, Rhamondre Stevenson, Kendrick Bourne, Jahlani Tavai, Elijah Ponder, Josh Minkins, and Lan Larison on Sunday.
Larison left Gillette Stadium in a walking boot following their win over Washington. According to the Boston Herald, he’ll end up on the injured reserve, and the Patriots will sign running back Deneric Prince.
Prince played two games with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2023. He spent last season on Miami’s practice squad and signed with the Memphis Showboats of the United Football League this offseason.
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