FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots offense was horrendous in Thursday’s training camp practice. Things were better on Friday, but not by much.
Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye both experienced highs and lows in a roughly 105-minute practice under sunny skies. However, it was rookie Joe Milton III who saw the cleanest day of all Patriots quarterbacks, submitting his best practice since arriving in New England.
Let’s get into everything that stood out in the Patriots’ third training camp practice.
Highlights from Jerod Mayo’s Press Conference
On the early struggles of the offense: “One thing I will say is, and this has been historically, the defense has always been ahead of the offense. The defense will always be ahead of the offense.
“Now, the offense, obviously they’re still gelling together, and we have a lot of guys on defense that already know the scheme. You know, it’s harder to jump to conclusions. Are these guys going to be good? Are they bad? Like, I don’t know, and I don’t think you guys know either. I don’t even think the coaches out there know.”
On the Jabrill Peppers contract extension: “I am very happy for Peppers and for his family and also for our team and the organization. He really embodies everything that we want on the field, you know, he’s very selfless. He’s out there flying around all the time, and it’s good to get that deal done.”
On Matthew Judon openly lobbying for a new contract: “We’re still kind of working through that stuff. Judon is a huge piece of the puzzle. He’s another guy who brings leadership, he brings obviously the playmaking ability, but also just that energy of wanting to go out there and dominate the man across from him.
“Hopefully, we get something done. He understands the business side of it as well. Hopefully, he understands that we really like him. We really like him as a player and as a person and want him here.”
On Milton repping ahead of Bailey Zappe: “I won’t say it will continue. Sometimes, maybe you have Joe get more reps, maybe you have Zappe get more reps. The one person I will say is going to get a lot of reps is, obviously Jacoby knows the offense, but Drake is going to have an opportunity to go out there and compete. Look, all four of those quarterbacks do have a skill set that we like. We’ll just see how it plays out.”
On players having a lounge at the facility: “To me, look, this is their place and that is their lounge and that is their locker room. I think it’s important that you have those spaces. One thing I’ve noticed over the past, let’s say five years, is a lot of times when guys get a break they just go to their locker, and they get on their phone. They’re scrolling through social media and there’s really no interaction. We thought it was important that those guys had a safe space to go.
“And really, that’s also a time where they build camaraderie. You should see some of the ping pong games in there, or even the PlayStation, we have a PlayStation, Xbox in there as well. It’s really to bring these guys closer together and have those guys want to be here. These days can be long, but we just thought it would be important for those guys to have that space.”
On Judon saying he’s “jealous” of his teammates getting paid: “Obviously, he’s entitled to feel that way. Once again, we always talk about checking the ego at the door and things like that. But they wouldn’t even be here without some type of ego. I understand where he’s coming from there, at the same time, we’re going to do what’s best for the organization, and really, what’s best for the players, too.”
Patriots Practice Observations for Friday, July 26
Attire
Players wore shells for the first time. Pads won’t come on until next Monday at the earliest.
Attendance
The following players were absent from practice:
- LB Sione Takitaki (PUP)
- OL Jake Andrews (PUP)
- OL Cole Strange (PUP)
- WR Kendrick Bourne (PUP)
- RB Antonio Gibson (NFI)
- DT Christian Barmore (new)
- S/LB Marte Mapu (new)
Gibson now has missed three straight practices while on NFI (non-football injury). Mayo said he expects the veteran back to return “relatively soon.”
Andrews also is dealing with an undisclosed injury, likely the same one that kept him out of minicamp. We haven’t seen him down on the rehab field at all.
Strange continues to rehab from a torn patellar tendon suffered late last season. He might sit out half the 2024 season, if not the entire campaign.
Bourne is still working his way back from a torn ACL. He’s watched portions of each practice in street clothes and hasn’t been wearing a brace on his surgically repaired knee.
Takitaki is still recovering from an offseason knee scope, according to ESPN’s Mike Reiss. The veteran linebacker previously said he wouldn’t miss a single day of camp, so it’s fair to wonder whether his knee could be a lingering issue.
Barmore and Mapu both participated in Thursday’s practice but didn’t see any action in team drills. On Friday, both showed up roughly 20 minutes after practice started but never participated. Barmore reportedly is dealing with an illness, while Mapu’s injury remains unclear.
Patriots’ QB Training Camp Battle: Day 3
Jacoby Brissett
11-on-11s: 5-for-8, one sack
7-on-7s: 9-for-12
It was an uneven day for Brissett, who at times looked uncomfortable behind the Patriots’ patchwork offensive line. At one point, Brissett nearly threw an interception to Ja’Whaun Bentley while avoiding pressure from Keion White, who had a good practice. Brissett wasn’t bad, but he was hesitant at times and didn’t make many high-level plays.
Drake Maye
11-on-11s: 8-for-11, one interception
7-on-7s: 9-for-13
This was a weird practice for Maye. He started poorly with multiple errant throws, including overthrowing Hunter Henry and throwing behind JuJu Smith-Schuster. Then he submitted the play of the day — a beautiful 40-yard bomb to Ja’Lynn Polk — before throwing a pick-six to Matthew Judon. Maye finished with a few solid throws in 11-on-11s, but overall, it was an erratic practice for the No. 3 overall pick.
.@DrakeMaye2 going deeeep to @jpolk_22 🆙 pic.twitter.com/zH0RdidzW2
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) July 26, 2024
Joe Milton III
11-on-11s: 8-for-10
7-on-7s: 4-for-6
This was Milton’s best practice since joining the Patriots. The sixth-round pick showed off his big arm on a 60-yard pass to Javon Baker and made a few other great throws. All of his reps were against the backup defense, but Milton did what he was supposed to do. He also plays with a ton of swagger and flair, for better or worse.
MORE: Simulate the NFL Season With PFN’s Playoff Predictor
Bailey Zappe
11-on-11s: 6-for-7
7-on-7s: 5-for-6
Zappe once again repped behind Milton and was a total afterthought. Most of his reps came during split-squad team drills. If Milton continues to practice as he did on Friday, Zappe won’t be in New England much longer.
Best and Worst Performances From Day 3 of Patriots Training Camp
CB Christian Gonzalez | STUD
You rarely see tweets about Christian Gonzalez during practices — and that’s a good thing. He just quietly dominates day in and day out, which continued Friday. One of his best moments came when he applied tight coverage on Polk, who couldn’t haul in a deep pass from Brissett.
You rarely see receivers gain separation on Gonzalez, especially on deep routes. He looks like a true No. 1 corner.
QB Joe Milton III | STUD
We’re grading on a curve here, as it’s not as if Milton had a “great” practice. But this was by far his best practice since joining the Patriots, which makes sense considering he finally was allowed to air it out and not just throw checkdowns. Believe us when we say Milton’s ridiculous arm strength is as advertised.
More than anything, Milton deserves credit for capitalizing on his increased opportunities. He’s proving he deserves to rep ahead of Zappe and seize control of the battle for the No. 3 QB spot.
WR Ja’Lynn Polk | STUD
With DeMario Douglas sidelined due to an injury, Polk has seen increased action with the top offense. And he’s responded by arguably being the best receiver in camp.
The second-round rookie won’t blow you away, but he’s consistent, sure-handed, and runs great routes. He’s already established a great rapport with Brissett and Maye, who’ve targeted Polk all over the field. Polk also lands in this section because of his 40-yard catch, which was the top highlight of practice.
Offensive Line | DUDS
The Patriots tried myriad combinations, and none of them seemed to work. It wasn’t quite as bad as Thursday, but it certainly wasn’t good. There were pressures throughout, with neither Maye nor Brissett ever looking comfortable. You have to be worried about how things will look once the pads come on.
Yes, it’s early, which is a necessary caveat. But O-line struggles can snowball in training camp — just look at the last two seasons.
WR JuJu Smith-Schuster | DUD
Smith-Schuster made a few catches, but none were difficult and he showed no juice after the catch. At this stage of his career, he’s little more than a slow possession receiver with a bad knee. You could make a case for the Patriots rostering Smith-Schuster just to have a veteran in the receiver room, but it would be a flimsy argument.
Things could change once the pads come on. But right now, Smith-Schuster feels like a roster longshot.
QB Drake Maye | DUD
We weren’t sure how to rank Maye, as the good plays arguably outweighed the bad. However, his bad plays were uglier than his good plays were impressive. It was a mixed bag for the rookie, who made multiple poor reads and wasn’t on the same page as his receivers.
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Nevertheless, as has been the case in each practice, there were times when Maye looked like the most talented quarterback on the field. He just needs to be more consistent.
Assorted Patriots’ Notes and Highlights From Day 3 of Camp
- Davon Godchaux was a full participant after missing Thursday’s practice. Mayo said the nose tackle experienced “tightness” after Wednesday’s opener.
- Douglas didn’t participate in team drills for the third consecutive practice. We saw him with tape on his left thumb/wrist after Thursday’s practice. Mayo said Douglas’ injury is “nothing serious.”
- These were the top offensive line combinations, from left to right:
First group: Caedan Wallace, Sidy Sow, David Andrews, Mike Onwenu, Chuks Okorafor
Second group: Wallace, Michael Jordan, Nick Leverett, Onwenu, Tyrone Wheatley Jr. - This was the first time we’ve seen Wallace at left tackle since the start of camp. Leverett also worked in at center with the top group.
- The Patriots also began an 11-on-11 period with Calvin Anderson at left tackle and Vederian Lowe at right tackle, though it’s worth noting the team was split onto both fields. Still, Mayo wasn’t kidding when he said the Patriots would shuffle O-line combinations until they find the best five-man lineup.
- Rookie receiver Baker made a nice catch on a deep ball from Zappe during 7-on-7s. The ball was thrown behind Baker, who made a nice adjustment to haul it in. He also caught a ball from Maye in 7-on-7s and generally was more involved than in previous practices.
- The offense pushed the downfield much more on Friday than on Thursday. The results were mixed, but it was more fun to watch.
- Third-year running back Kevin Harris stood out with multiple long runs. He has the early edge for the top backup job.
- Keion White popped during the first 11-on-11 period, with his pressure on Brissett resulting in a near-interception by Bentley.
- Milton did a backflip early in practice, and the crowd loved it. Friday saw the best crowd of camp so far, perhaps because there wasn’t any rain in the forecast. There still hasn’t been much juice, though.
- Marcus Jones had another solid day, including tight coverage on a deep pass for Jalen Reagor in 7-on-7s. He’s off to a good start.
- Cornerback Shaun Wade wore a red non-contact jersey.
- Kicker competition update: Chad Ryland went 3-for-4; Joey Slye went 4-for-4.
- Here are additional highlights from Friday’s practice. The Patriots will take Saturday off before returning to practice on Sunday morning:
Extended look at Patriots quarterbacks pic.twitter.com/ADWnkiCfbv
— Dakota Randall (@DakRandall) July 26, 2024
Patriots rookie QB Drake Maye to Javon Baker, Kayshon Boutte pic.twitter.com/mmq76yhZCj
— Doug Kyed (@DougKyed) July 26, 2024
Maye ➡️ Polk pic.twitter.com/r35wsJEKD0
— Mike Kadlick (@mikekadlick) July 26, 2024
Out-breakers have given Maye some trouble early
Tends to throw either high or behind pic.twitter.com/S0grRwTDZJ
— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) July 26, 2024
Stay for a @Qbjayy7 surprise 🔥@NFL | #NEPats pic.twitter.com/T4PKFKLJSY
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) July 26, 2024