Patriots training camp notebook: Defense wins Day 1

Author Alex Barth

July 28th, 2021 1:46 PM

During his pre-training camp press conference on Tuesday, Bill Belichick told reporters his team would “continue the process pretty much from where we ended up and left off in the spring.” His defense appeared to take that message to heart on Wednesday, dominating the first training camp practice of the year.

Most of the team drills came in the form of red zone work, and Patriots quarterbacks regularly had to hold the ball, waiting for windows to open. When they did throw the ball, targets were often tightly covered.

The defense ended up with two turnovers for their efforts – Adrian Phillips picked off a Cam Newton pass while working against Hunter Henry in the flat, and Raekwon McMillan intercepted a pass that bounced off James White‘s hands in the rainy conditions (White then took a lap). Jalen Mills nearly had a goal line interception as well, but couldn’t complete the catch.

Newton wasn’t the only quarterback to struggle with the Pats’ defense. Mac Jones had a number of balls knocked down by defensive backs, and one swatted at the line by newly-signed defensive tackle Davon Godchaux.

Here’s some more news and notes from Day 1 of training camp…

• The QB competition begins

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  Neither quarterback stood out on Wednesday. The conditions weren't exactly ideal for throwing the ball, as rain was intermittent throughout practice.
  
  Between the weather and the defense, Newton finished 8-for-15 with two picks, while Jones was 9-of-19. Still, each QB had their highlight moment. For Newton, it came early in practice in 11-on-11 red zone drills. With all his receivers covered, Newton scrambled to his left and just managed to sneak inside the pylon for a touchdown. He then struck a pose in front of the bleachers, and the fans went wild.
  
  Jones' highlight was a bounce-back sequence towards the end of practice. After the deflected Godchaux pass, he threw back-to-back touchdowns, one to Gunner Olszewski who was running a crossing route along the end line, and then a perfectly-placed back-corner fade to N'Keal Harry. However, Jones also had to run a lap after fumbling a snap.
  
  Matt Dolloff has a more extensive review of Jones' day here.
  
  Meanwhile, Brian Hoyer finished 9-of-17. With Jarrett Stidham on PUP, Hoyer appeared to get double the reps, instead of all three quarterbacks splitting the time. As a result, Hoyer was on the field quite a bit.

• Agholor steps up

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  When the Patriots quarterbacks were able to complete passes, Nelson Agholor was frequently on the other end. The newly-signed wide receiver caught a pair of touchdowns, including a back-corner grab from Jones.
  
  Agholor figures to play a big role in the Patriots' offense this year, but was inconsistent in spring practices. Wednesday was a strong indication that he's starting to build chemistry with the rest of the offense.

• Raekwon McMillan stock rising?

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  Seemingly every year, there's a player who surprises on the first day of training camp by playing a bigger role than expected. This year, that honor went to linebacker Raekwon McMillan.
  
  McMillan has a great chance to carve out a role on the roster. With Terez Hall on PUP, there will be more snaps available at MIKE linebacker, and he offers a skillset that doesn't overlap much with Ja'Whaun Bentley, and would compliment him as well. Add in his expansive special teams history, and he's an ideal candidate for a roster spot.
  
  Of course, he has to earn his way onto the roster with his play, but he got off to a strong start with his interception on Wednesday. Consider McMillan a player to watch, especially once pads come on next week.
• Watch those hands!

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  For most of practice, a number of defensive backs were wearing boxing-type gloves. It's a technique teams have used in the past, to help cornerbacks hone their coverage skills without being able to grab receivers.
  
  Among those wearing the pads on Wednesday were Joejuan Williams and Justin Bethel, who saw a handful of coverage snaps on top of his usual special teams role. We'll see if this was a one-day thing, or if the mitts become a constant throughout camp.

• Hoyer’s side session

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  There was one side throwing session on Wednesday, which came about halfway through practice. During kickoff drills, Brian Hoyer was on the adjacent field throwing with James White, Sony Michel, Damien Harris, Hunter Henry, Agholor, and Harry.
  
  During that session, Newton and Jones were speaking with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels about 15 yards away on the same field. Expect the other two quarterbacks to have their own breakout sessions as camp goes on.

• Play of the day

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  Wednesday wasn't a highlight-heavy practice, but one play did manage to stand out. During red zone 11-on-11's Brian Hoyer threw a fade to the back-corner of the end zone, where Kristian Wilkerson climbed the ladder to grab the ball over Dee Virgin.
  
  Wilkerson spent last season on the Patriots' practice squad after getting cut by the Titans out of camp. He's expected to be one of the players competing for the final wide receiver spot this year, and certainly helped his case on Day 1.
• Taking attendance

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  79 of the Patriots' 91 players participated in Wednesday's practice. Trent Brown and Kyle Van Noy - who were both placed on PUP on Tuesday - took part, although Van Noy was wearing a red non-contact jersey.
  
  Of the 12 players who didn't participate, 11 were already on PUP or NFI. Anfernee Jennings was the only unexplained absence.
  
  Towards the end of practice, Stephon Gilmore and Chase Winovich - who are both on PUP - joined teammates on the sidelines. That's an encouraging sign for both players but especially Gilmore, who is coming off a contract-related holdout. Neither actually participated in practice, and remain on PUP.

• Notable quotables

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  Dont'a Hightower on the tone of training camp: "Being out here in training camp and knowing what's at stake and how soon the turnaround is from training camp to preseason and then to the actual season, kind of lights up a fire under your ass because there's no time to play around. There's no time to take plays off or practices off."
  
  James White on Cam Newton and Mac Jones: "They’re both talented guys, and we run the same offense with both of those guys in there. So, those guys are competing, and we have confidence whoever’s in there at quarterback.”
  
  Jonnu Smith on playing for the Patriots: "You see what's different about it. Just even when I'm out, man, getting acclimated to the city. It's just a different feeling. It's such a historical sports city, you know? I go to a Celtics game it's 'Jonnu!' You know what I mean? It's like golly! Just being a part of this organization and everything it has to offer, I'm just all in."
  
  Hunter Henry on playing with Jonnu Smith: "This offense is built for tight ends. Obviously, they have had a lot of success with two tight ends. We’re completely different players from the guys in the past. Those guys were great football players, obviously. They have a tremendous legacy here, so we’re not trying to be those guys. We’re trying to be ourselves. Just looking forward to the challenge ahead. But, this offense has a tradition with two tight ends."
  
  Adrian Phillips on what he sees in the Patriots' offensive offseason acquisitions: "Talent. Talent. Them boys, they were grinding this offseason. They were just working hard, and we’re just out there competing. You always want to go against people that’s going to bring their best every day. I know it’s Day 1 right now, but they’re bringing their best. They were bringing it in OTAs, and it was good to see it."
  
  Lawrence Guy on playing in front of fans again: "It’s a great feeling to get back to something normal. Playing with no fans sucked. I don’t care what nobody says, it’s not fun. Having the fans out here for training camp is a big motivation; that everything’s going bad, they bring energy."

For more on Day 1 of Patriots training camp, check out the daily recap podcast featuring Bob Socci.

The Patriots get back at it tomorrow, with practice set for 9:45 a.m. That one will once again be open to the public, weather permitting.

Patriots 2021 Positional Previews: Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | Offensive Line | Defensive Line | Linebacker | Cornerback | Safety | Special Teams

Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at [email protected].

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