Patriots training camp notebook: New faces emerging on Day 6
With key players out at multiple positions, new faces are starting to become more familiar at Patriots training camp.
The second block of New England Patriots training camp practices wrapped up on Tuesday afternoon at Gillette Stadium. It was the second padded practice of the summer for the team, after starting off in pads on Monday.
On the field, Tuesday’s practice was similar to Monday’s. There was a good back-and-forth between the top offense and defense, while the second offense struggled.
At the same time, the Patriots are suddenly dealing with multiple absences of key players – especially on defense. Tuesday’s practice was a window into how the team plans to handle some of those absences, at least in the short term.
Let’s get to all that and more in today’s Patriots training camp notebook…
Another down day for Drake Maye

Drake Maye’s second day in full pads didn’t go much better than his first. He finished 5-of-11 in 11-on-11s, including a 1-of-6 period to close the day. He didn’t have any high-impact throws in his completions, and also missed a few throws in one-on-ones.
What’s up with Maye, who had a decent start to camp? One thing may be the complexity of the defense he’s facing. Everything is now happening much quicker in front of him, and there was always going to be an adjustment period in that regard. Plus, most of Maye’s misses have been overthrows, which could be a sign he’s just a little too amped up in his first few NFL practices.
Jacoby Brissett, tight ends building chemistry

Meanwhile, Jacoby Brissett and the projected starting offense is starting to build chemistry and make plays with regularity. As the team moved into more red zone work he finished multiple drives with touchdowns.
One of those touchdown throws was a touch pass over the middle to tight end Hunter Henry. Through the first week of camp Brissett has targeted Henry and Austin Hooper often. The Patriots’ top two tight ends have been among the most consistent players in camp.
Brissett had another highlight throw to rookie wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk. Polk ran a fade to the back corner of the end zone, and Brissett lofted the ball up where only Polk could get it. Polk was able to get to the high point before cornerback Marco Wilson, then maintain control as he hit the ground hard.
Offensive line starting to click

Brissett and that top offense have been helped the last few days by improved blocking up front in the pass game. After mixing and matching tackles early in camp the Patriots have stuck with Caedan Wallace and Chuks Okorafor on the edges the past few days. While it hasn’t been perfect, the progress from that group is clear.
Granted, that hasn’t been with the full projected starting offensive line. David Andrews missed his second practice in a row on Tuesday. Free agent signing Nick Leverett has stepped in for him. Coming into camp Leverett seemed to be in a battle for the backup center job with Atonio Mafi, who is trying to make the move from guard.
Meanwhile, the run game had its issues on Tuesday. In particular, Keion White was a problem (for the offense) for the second day in a row.
Procedural issues

The offense also had some issues before the snap on Tuesday. Twice (once with Jacoby Brissett under center, once with Drake Maye) the unit couldn’t get set correctly before the ball was snapped. That resulted in a pair of laps.
Without knowing the play call it’s impossible to tell what exactly was the issue in each case. Typically though these kinds of miscommunications involve substituting or players lining up in the wrong spot.
As for in-play miscues, there were no interceptions on Tuesday. Running back Kevin Harris did have a fumble though, letting the ball get away from him as he hit the hole in an 11-on-11 drill.
WATCH: Zolak & Barth react to Day 6 of Patriots training camp
Offense one-on-ones

For the second time this camp, the Patriots did a one-on-one period between pass catchers and defenders. Here are some of the more notable or emphatic/convincing wins…
Christian Gonzalez over Jalen Reagor
JuJu Smith-Schuster over Alex Austin
Isaiah Bolden over Javon Baker (PBU)
Austin over Kayshon Boutte
Antonio Gibson over Raekwon McMillan
Reagor over Mikey Victor
Austin Hooper over Kyle Dugger
Azizi Hearn over Kawaan Baker
Steele Chambers over Terrell Jennings
Mitchell Wilcox over Jaylinn Hawkins
Boutte over Marcus Jones
Marcellas Dial over Smith-Schuster
Tyquan Thornton over Marco Wilson
While that was going on, the Patriots’ offensive and defensive linemen also went against each other. Mike Onwenu had another strong showing, while Caedan Wallace wasn’t as impressive as he was in Monday’s one-on-ones. He had one rep where he was beat convincingly by Joshua Uche.
JuJu Smith-Schuster’s most notable day

Tuesday was the most notable day of Patriots training camp for veteran wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. That came with positives and negatives.
Early in 11-on-11s, Smith Schuster ran a dig route that got him wide open near the sideline. However, he was unable to haul in a throw that was a bit ahead of him from Jacoby Brissett, but did hit him in both hands.
Smith-Schuster rebounded later in practice. Working in the red zone, Smith-Schuster ran a crisp slant route to open himself up for Joe Milton. Milton lasered the throw over the middle and Smith-Schuster caught the ball in stride in the end zone, prompting a celebration from the whole offense.
Towards the end of practice, Smith-Schuster briefly left the field with a member of the training staff and had his left leg looked at. He returned to the field before practice concluded, and told reporters after practice that he tripped up running on the sideline and wanted to make sure everything was okay.
Recent additions stepping up on defense

The Patriots have been without some of their best defensive players the last few days, with defensive tackle Christian Barmore out indefinitely due to blood clots, Matthew Judon missing the last two practices due to a contract dispute, and Jabrill Peppers leaving Monday’s practice early due to an injury. On the field though those reps need to be filled, and they have been by two new additions.
On the edge, Oshane Ximines has seen his role increase each of the last few days. After factoring in more on Monday he saw more time with the top defense on Tuesday. Ha made the most of that opportunity, succeeding at helping set the edge in the run game while recording a pressure as a pass rusher.
At tackle, the Patriots have given more snaps to Trysten Hill. A former Dallas Cowboys second-round pick, Hill signed with the Patriots’ practice squad during the season last year, so he already has some familiarity with the defense.
In the secondary, Joshuah Bledsoe was a surprise standout on Tuesday. He recorded a pass breakup in one-on-ones, and two more in team drills including one against Hunter Henry in the end zone.
Field goals

There was another chapter of the Patriots’ kicker battle on Tuesday. The team had one period where they practiced running the field goal team on with the clock running. Each kicker got one chance at it, with Chad Ryland and Joey Slye both hitting their lone kick which looked to be from between 45 and 50 yards.
Punt hang times

Before we get to today’s hangtimes, there is some needed context. The Patriots were working on punting from around midfield, so Bryce Baringer didn’t have the full field to work with. That meant shorter punts. His control was excellent though, with five of the seven punts being downed inside the 20.
Anyways, here are the hangtimes…
4.20 seconds
4.24
4.34*
3.97
3.64
4.50*
4.17
*Touchbacks
Attendance

Not spotted at Tuesday’s Patriots training camp practice:
LB Matthew Judon
C David Andrews
DT Christian Barmore
G Cole Strange (PUP)
C Jake Andrews (PUP)
LB Sione Takitaki (PUP)
On the field, but not in uniform:
S Jabrill Peppers
LB Marte Mapu
TE Jaheim Bell
WR Kendrick Bourne (PUP)
Red non-contact jersey:
WR DeMario Douglas
CB Shaun Wade
What’s next?

The Patriots will be off on Wednesday. They return to practice on Thursday, a week out from their preseason opener.