‘Game 1 is always the hardest’: Patriots veteran shares perspective on Will Campbell’s debut
"It happens," Patriots right-tackle Morgan Moses said of the rookie's rough second half.
FOXBOROUGH — It’s no secret that opposing teams are going to attack the left side of the Patriots’ offensive line this season, with rookies Will Campbell and Jared Wilson starting side-by-side as they protect Drake Maye‘s blindside.
Sunday was the first regular-season glimpse of the new pairing, and things went reasonably well for Campbell until late in the third quarter. Then came the penalties and the pressure. A promising start quickly turned into a tough finish.
Patriots right tackle Morgan Moses has been in the league for a long time. He is in his 12th season. He’s playing for his fourth franchise. He has seen many rookie tackles get their first taste of the NFL on opening day.
In the locker room, a reporter asked Moses what he would say to a rookie after such a debut.
“It happens,” Moses said. “Whether you’re year one or year 12, you’re going to go through phases in the game. They get paid just like we do and its for you to be the professional that you are and to hone back into techniques and things like that.”
“But, I told him, like look my first start was against Aldon Smith. It happens. You learn from that,” he added. “I think Game 1 is always the hardest because when you look at the film, people are playing vanilla looks and not giving you too much information so you get out there on Sunday and see some things that you probably didn’t see on tape.”
The Patriots allowed four sacks as a team, two of which involved Campbell. He also had a pair of false start penalties. For the most part, it looked like Drake Maye had a decent amount of time to throw, but the late-game miscues took away from what began as a solid effort from the offensive line.
“Overall, I think both of those guys on the other side took a step forward,” Moses said. “Obviously they’re going to get challenged every single week as a young side, but I think they’re physically and mentally prepared to do that.”
The Patriots’ offensive woes continued with a 13-point effort on Sunday. They were third to last in scoring last year at 17 points per game.
“I think to have a successful offensive play, it takes really everybody,” coach Mike Vrabel said. “It takes the play caller, right? Getting the play in efficiently, it takes us being able to identify the players that we need to block, the ones that we’re not going to be able to block and the ones that when we block them and we’re in combination, that we have to move them, and then the backs have to have to run where they’re not.”
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