FOXBOROUGH – Will 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 several 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 on Sunday. “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.”
Despite earning a good grade from Pro Football Focus (85.4), Campbell was critical of his performance. The No. 4 overall pick didn’t allow a pressure, but was involved in the play where the Commanders strip-sacked Drake Maye.
On the snap, it appeared that Jacob Martin beat left guard Jared Wilson before getting to Maye on a stunt play.
“I just feel like I’ve got to get better,” Campbell said. “We have to get better as a team. There’s still a lot of meat left on the bone, no matter what really happened on the scoreboard. I feel like this team, we have a lot more that we can do.”
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