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10 takeaways from the second day of Patriots training camp
The latest on Mac Jones and Bill Belichick's relationship, Lawrence Guy's holdout, and Josh Uche's contract situation.
Another day, another practice without pads in Foxborough.
The Patriots are pretty much still in OTA mode with their practice schedule, coach Bill Belichick said.
That’s been a good thing health-wise for New England, who had all but three of the players on their roster on the field for the second day of training camp.
The offense struggled again, but showed signs of improvement. Kyle Dugger continues to impress as he enters a contract year. Josh Uche revealed that he has been talking with the team about a possible extension.
Here are 10 takeaways from Thursday’s training camp session.
A little context behind Mac Jones’s performance
A quick glance at Mac Jones’s numbers would show a 6-for-14 performance with an interception. On the surface, that doesn’t appear to be very good.
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But, here’s a little context. Yes, he missed his first four throws. But, that was during 7-on-7s with a pair of staffers holding up tennis racquet-like objects at the line of scrimmage to simulate taller defenders. Plus, the throws were largely to the back corner of the endzone. And, on one of them, DeVante Parker made a nifty grab that was ruled an incompletion because he had one foot out of bounds.
Those aren’t excuses because Bailey Zappe went 3-for-4 in the same drill. But it’s clear that wasn’t a scenario that was very similar to actual gameplay.
So, outside of those throws, Jones went 6-for-10 in the 11-on-11 red zone session which was an improvement from yesterday. He made the best throw of the day, a play-action pass that hit DeVante Parker in stride for a 20-yard touchdown.
Mac Jones and Bill Belichick say their relationship is ‘good’ again
On Wednesday, Mac Jones said that he believes his relationship with Bill Belichick is “good” now after discussing a fresh start with the coach.
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Belichick said he agreed with Jones’ comments on Thursday.
“Yeah,” Belichick said. “Again, I’m good with all of the players that are on the team. Absolutely.”
Kyle Dugger is going to be expensive if he keeps playing like this
Kyle Dugger intercepted a pass from Mac Jones in the endzone for the second-straight day.
It was a questionable decision by Jones, who made an off-balance throw that wasn’t close to finding a receiver. But credit to Dugger for making the play.
“Kyle’s a really good player. Yeah, he’s big, he can run, he can tackle, he can cover, he can blitz,” Belichick said of Dugger. “Yeah, he’s great. These guys are great. That’s why they go high in the draft, premium for them and they end up getting a lot of money. That’s what they bring.
Bailey Zappe bounces back
Jones got the better of Zappe on Day 1, but that wasn’t the case today. Zappe went 9-for-14 on Thursday. His 6-for-10 performance in 11-on-11 was similar to Jones, but what set him apart was the 7-on-7 performance.
Listed at 6-foot-1, Zappe sometimes struggles with taller defenders because they can get a hand up and bat his passes down. But, he thrived in the early drill designed to simulate that kind of pressure.
Gonzalez vs. JuJu
Not only is rookie Christian Gonzalez getting first-team reps, he spent a good amount of time covering JuJu Smith-Schuster who is expected to be the Patriots’ top receiver.
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An early vote of confidence and a test for the rookie.
After minicamp holdout, Lawrence Guy flashes his smile
According to multiple reports, Lawrence Guy missed last month’s minicamp because of a holdout over his practice situation.
He has attended both days of training camp, and spoke to the media for the first time since the holdout on Thursday. He said his agent has had discussions with the team but wants to keep the details private.
“I’m here. Big smile on my face,” Guy said. “I’m going to do whatever I can for the organization and work as hard as I can.”
Jack Jones spending time with the backups
Jack Jones continues to practice with the Patriots a few weeks before he is due in court for a probable cause hearing related to his June arrest at Logan Airport.
However, the second-year cornerback spent most of his time with the second unit while Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones, and Gonzalez worked with the starters.
Kick returns and outside corner reps for Marcus Jones
In addition to getting increased snaps at cornerback, Marcus Jones practiced returning kickoffs on Thursday.
The speed that allowed him to become one of ten NFL players to ever score a touchdown in all three phases of the game was on display.
Josh Uche would love to keep playing in New England
Josh Uche said his agent has been in contact with the Patriots about a potential contract extension.
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He said he’d like to stay in New England but plans to make sure he’s with a team that shows they want him.
“This is the team that developed me into the player I’ve become,” Uche said. “This is the place I’ve called home for the last four years. I’m comfortable. I know the area. I got family out here. I love it out here. I’ve been able to make myself at home, and I would love to be here. But at the end of the day, I understand it’s a business.”
Rhamondre Stevenson was limited
Rhamondre Stevenson attended practice on Thursday as a limited participant, according to multiple reports.
The running back was a full participant on Wednesday.
The Patriots did not run the ball much during scrimmages anyways, continuing to focus on red zone passing.
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