5 takeaways from Day 2 of Patriots minicamp
A one-handed pick from Christian Gonzalez, an update on an injured receiver, and Will Campbell's summer plans.
FOXBOROUGH – The Patriots brought plenty of energy during their last open practice before training camp. The session was moved indoors to the field house because of rain, but the music was pumping and players seemed to be working hard heading into the break.
Players attacked their sprints in waves during the early portion of practice. There were plenty of redzone walkthroughs on offense and defense, followed by scrimmaging towards the end.
It was a competitive bridge towards one of the most critical periods of the offseason. The New England won’t have any official practices between now and late-July.
“I don’t think it’s downtime. It’s time away from the facility,” coach Mike Vrabel said. “I think it’s important. It’s probably the five most important weeks of the offseason as far as I’m concerned, just in my history as a player and a coach.”
“It’s critical that they come back in shape, that they’re ready to go for training camp, that we’re prepared as coaches with the schedule, the installation and what we’re doing. The players have to hold up their end of the bargain to prepare for training camp.”
Tuesday was a solid start. Here are five takeaways from the action.
Up-and-down Drake Maye
Patriots quarterback Drake Maye had an-up-and down showing in the padless practice. He went 9-for-14 passing in 11-on-11 team drills and went 3-for-6 in the red zone.
He was, for the most part, accurate hitting running backs in the flat off of play action rollouts and spreading the ball around to various receivers. He hit Hunter Henry for a big gain and found Kayshon Boutte and DeMario Douglas several times.
He did have a couple moments when the defense’s pressure seemed to get to him. There was one play when they brought Marcus Jones on a corner blitz and the play was whistled dead before Maye could get a throw off. There was another blitz where he was forced to scramble away.
His biggest mistake of the day ended up as an interception by Christian Gonzalez.
Play of the day: Christian Gonzalez
Maye sailed a throw intended for rookie receiver Kyle Williams a bit too high and Gonzalez took advantage, grabbing a smooth one-handed interception and following it up with a lengthy return.
One a day where there was limited space in the bubble, no pads on, and the desire to keep guys healthy heading into training camp in play, there weren’t many big defensive plays. There were a few pass breakups, sure, and times when Maye got swallowed up by the rush.
But, this was a highlight for the Patriots defense, and it got them fired up.
Ja’Lynn Polk update
Second-year receiver Ja’Lynn Polk had worn a yellow practice jersey earlier in the week. Vrabel explained that the yellow jerseys will be used throughout season to mark players that can practice, but are working through injuries that other players should be mindful of.
“Just trying to be careful and not have any issues,” Vrabel said of Polk. “He had a shoulder procedure in the offseason. At this point in time, I really would just like to get to training camp. I think we’ve figured out how to practice early on. You can clearly see that there’s different speeds in how we practice.”
“Early on, maybe that jog-through was a little faster than what it needed to be. So, I just wanted to be careful that they can let him get his looks and operate and function, but just be mindful that this player’s working with something. That’ll be the case throughout the season.”
Summer plans
With several weeks away from the practice facility ahead, both players and coaches are looking forward to recharging.
“Probably do a little bit of football, do a little bit of golf, do a little bit of relaxing,” Vrabel said of his plans.
Drake Maye will marry his longtime girlfriend Ann Michael Hudson during the break.
Rookie Patriots left tackle Will Campbell said he plans to spend most of the time in Foxborough.
“I’m going to be here for most of them, but just go away enjoy some time with some family for a couple days and then just work out and get ready for training camp,” said Campbell.
Schweitzer retires
The Patriots placed offensive lineman Wes Schweitzer on the reserved/retired list. He had signed with the team in March after a stint with the Jets. He played just four games last season as he battled injuries.
He made 62 career starts after being drafted in the sixth round by Atlanta in 2016.
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