Patriots expected to sign free-agent running back Ezekiel Elliott
The New England Patriots are adding some big-name excitement to their running back room.
As first reported by Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Patriots are expected to sign free-agent running back Ezekiel Elliott to a one-year deal worth up to $6 million. Rapoport added the nugget that Elliott is expected to wear No. 15 for the Patriots, a number currently worn by punter Corliss Waitman.
Elliott rushed for 876 yards and 12 touchdowns on 231 carries (3.8-yard average) in 2022 for the Cowboys, adding 17 catches for 92 yards in 15 games.
Elliott and the Cowboys mutually parted ways this past off-season, as Jerry Jones didn’t want to disrespect the veteran back by asking him to take a pay cut. He first visited with the Patriots back in July, and was spotted out at a Boston-area restaurant with his now-quarterback, Mac Jones.
The Patriots still have Rhamondre Stevenson as their lead back, while second-year pros Kevin Harris and Pierre Strong Jr. have been next in the pecking order. However, neither Harris nor Strong has been able to separate themselves in training camp, rarely showing signs of making a real year-2 jump.
Signing Elliott gives the Patriots a veteran with a pedigree of playmaking who can also excel at smaller things that the Pats value, like pass protection. It’s not the greatest sign for Harris or Strong’s progress at this point, though.
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Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Yell at him on Twitter @mattdolloff and follow him on Instagram @realmattdolloff. Check out all of Matt’s content here.
Patriots Training Camp Notebook: Wrapping up in Foxborough on Day 14
On Monday, the New England Patriots held their final training camp practice of the summer in Foxborough. They’re hardly done with camp, but they’ll leave for Green Bay on Tuesday to kick off a week of joint practices and a preseason game with the Packers there, then go directly to Nashville for another week of the same with the Tennessee Titans. They won’t return to Foxborough until after the final preseason game, which represents the end of training camp.
Monday’s practice served as what seemed to be a preparation for the two weeks ahead. In a fully-padded practice the team worked in a lot of situational drills, mainly two-minute and red zone.
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Overall, it was a strong practice for the offense. Mac Jones was 16-of-21 throwing the ball and the unit has a whole won the significant number of reps in the red zone.
However, there may have been a long-term hit on the offensive side of the ball. That’s where we’ll start our recap of Day 14…
Injuries
New England Patriots tight end Mike Gesicki (88) makes a catch during training camp in Foxboro. (Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports)
The big story of the day on Monday was an injury suffered by Mike Gesicki. The Patriots’ newly-signed tight end went down during a live tackling drill early in practice and did not return.
On the play, Gesicki was going one-on-one against Jahlani Tavai. There was nothing out of the ordinary about Tavai’s tackle, and at first watch it seemed as if anything went wrong, it would have been with Gesicki’s lower body given the way Tavai wrapped him up around his ankles. However, Gesicki came up favoring his right arm, towards his shoulder. He slowly walked off the field with the training staff, and did not return to practice. It’s possible he hurt it while bracing himself on his fall.
Gesicki wasn’t the only Patriots player to suffer an injury on Monday either. Late in practice, outside linebacker Anfernee Jennings came up in pain during an 11-on-11 two-minute drill. After throwing his helmet off Jennings had his arm looked at by the training staff. He walked off the field and stayed on the sideline, continuing to get worked on by the trainers until the end of practice.
Attendance
Jul 26, 2023; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots guard Cole Strange (69) makes his way to the practice fields for training camp at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
As for players who had previously missed practice, let’s start on the offensive line. Starting guard Cole Strange took part in Sunday’s session – a first since he injured his knee on Day 5 of camp. That was a non-padded practice, and with the team back in pads on Monday Strange wasn’t on the field for the beginning of practice. He emerged from Gillette Stadium later in the day in full pads, but just observed and didn’t take part in any drills.
Backup guard and center Kody Russey did the same as Strange on Monday, after not taking part in Sunday’s practice at all. Russey got hurt in the team’s preseason opener on Thursday night.
Ty Montgomery, Jonathan Jones, Pierre Strong, Ronnie Perkins, Michael Onwenu (PUP), Cody Davis (PUP), and Calvin Anderson (NFI) remain out. Recently-signed defensive end Trey Flowers (PUP) was on the field for part of practice but didn’t participate in any drills.
Highlight catches
New England Patriots wide receiver DeVante Parker makes a catch during 2023 training camp in Foxboro. (Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports)
There were two highlight catches made on the day. Both were on throws from Mac Jones.
For the first, the offense was working in the red zone. Kendrick Bourne ran a fade against Myles Bryant, but Bryant had him covered well as he got to the back of the end zone. Despite Bourne not having much room Jones threw the ball out in front of him, where only he could make a play on it given his length advantage over Bryant. Bourne reached out in front and snagged the ball with one hand, keeping his feet in bounds to complete the score.
The other highlight catch came from DeVante Parker, and was a pure strength play. Running an out in a two-minute drill, Jones slightly underthrew Parker. That allowed Marcus Jones to get in position to make a pick. Jones leapt up and caught the ball over his head in front of Parker, but Parker then ripped it out of his hands before he landed, completing the catch for himself. It was another ’50-50′ win for Parker who has had plenty of those this summer, and another tough play for Marcus Jones as the team continues to test him on the boundary against bigger wide receivers.
Teachable moments
New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Bill O’Brien head to the practice fields for 2023 training camp in Foxboro. (Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports)
It was a good day for the offense, but not perfect. Their biggest miscue came during a ‘two-minute drill’ late in practice.
‘Two-minute drill’ periods refer to any period where the offense has to move the ball the length of the field with a limited clock, but it’s not always two minutes. On Monday the offense was working on going 75 yards in 45 seconds.
The projected starting offense got to around midfield with about 20 seconds on the clock, and had already used its timeout. Mac Jones hit Rhamondre Stevenson out of the backfield for a big gain. As he got inside the 20, instead of going out of bounds to set up a field goal Stevenson cut back inside, trying to score a touchdown. The coaching staff ruled he would have been down (there was no live tackling) and the offense instead had to hurry to the line to try and spike the ball. They didn’t have enough time, and the clock expired just before they could get the snap off.
After that period, offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien spoke with both Jones and Stevenson. It was a teachable moment, and we’ll see how the unit responds if/when presented with a similar situation in a game.
There were also a couple of times offensive linemen had to run laps during practice. Rookie center Jake Andrews was sent around the field after a couple of bad snaps, and newly-signed guard Micah Vanterpool had to take a lap after a false start.
More on Malik
Aug 10, 2023; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Malik Cunningham (16) during the second half against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
As was the case on Sunday, we saw Malik Cunningham get into the mix at quarterback in team drills. Rather than run full drives, he would sub in for a play or two at times for both Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe.
Based on the way he’s being used right now, it looks more like the Patriots are preparing an offensive package for him rather than setting him up to compete for a full-time depth chart spot. Still, it’s another encouraging sign that there’s in fact a long-term plan for him in Foxborough.
Standouts on defense
Jul 27, 2023; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots linebacker Josh Uche (55) works with a weight bag during training camp at Gillette Stadium. Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
On the defensive side of the ball, it was a standout day for outside linebacker Josh Uche. He had a pair of would-be sacks, leading the team. A good sign for him, as he ramps up with the start of the season getting closer.
The other defensive standout for the Patriots was cornerback Shaun Wade. He had a couple of nice plays in coverage, with his best being a perfect read on a running back screen that allowed him to intercept Bailey Zappe in the backfield for a would-be pick-six.
Since being acquired by the Patriots from the Baltimore Ravens at the end of his rookie training camp in 2021 for a fifth-round pick, Wade hasn’t seen much time on the field during the regular season. But with boundary corner depth a need, that could change if the 6-foot-1 Wade continues making plays.
One kicker gets all the work
Aug 10, 2023; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots place kicker Chad Ryland (38) kicks the ball to the Houston Texans during the first half at Gillette Stadium. Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
The Patriots attempted plenty of field goals on Monday, between their special teams work and the two-minute drill periods. All of those attempts went to rookie Chad Ryland.
Ryland went 7-of-8 on the day. His lone miss was slightly to the left on one of his longer attempts.
Hang times
Punters Corliss Waitman and Bryce Baringer wait on a snap from long snapper Tucker Addington at Patriots training camp. (Alex Barth/98.5 The Sports Hub)
There were two team punt periods on Monday. Both were heavily situational, with the punters either kicking out of their own end zone or from the plus side of the 50. Keeping that in mind, here are today’s hang times…
Bryce Baringer:
5.06 seconds
3.43
—
3.68
3.94Corliss Waitman:
4.80
4.40
—
4.66
4.34A rookie tradition
New England Patriots guard Atonio Mafi makes his way to the practice fields for 2023 training camp in Foxboro. (Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports)
To wrap up practice, the Patriots had some fun with some of their rookies – in particular, offensive linemen Sidy Sow and Atonio Mafi, and defensive lineman Keion White.
With the entire team watching, all three players had one chance to catch a punt. Sow got the ball lined up but it bounced off his left shoulder. Mafi and White were both able to make the catch, which got the rest of the team celebrating. After practice, veterans noted that the reward for the rookies completing the catches was less meeting time following practice.
What’s next?
Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur and quarterback Jordan Love (10) participate in Packers training camp on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, at Ray Nitschke Field in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin. Samantha Madar/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wis
As mentioned above, the Patriots will now back there bags and head to Green Bay to begin joint practices with the Packers. The first of the two joint practices will be held on Wednesday.
