Patriots training camp notebook: Joint practices with the Eagles on Day 14
New England Patriots training camp hit its apex on Tuesday with the lone joint practice of the summer against the Philadelphia Eagles.
All Patriots training camp practices are important, but some are more important than others. Padded practices carry more weight that non-padded practices, etc.
At the top of the training camp totem pole is joint practices. The ability to compete against players from another team, while still in a controlled environment, creates an ideal setting for both player development and evaluation.
On Tuesday the Patriots held their lone joint practice of the summer. The Philadelphia Eagles were in town ahead of their preseason Week 2 matchup on Thursday. An 11-win team a year ago, this was a great measuring stick for this young Patriots team.
Who made the most of this opportunity? What else stood out? Let’s take a look in today’s Patriots training camp notebook…
Offensive line woes spotlighted
The offensive line – particularly the tackles – have been one of the biggest talking points during Patriots training camp. On Tuesday that group got put to the test against the Eagles’ strong defensive front.
That matchup was one definitively by the Eagles. Everybody tracks training camp sacks differently, but most counts from Tuesday had the number in double digits between the reps with Jacoby Brissett or Drake Maye at quarterback. All four tackles – Vederian Lowe, Chuks Okorafor, Calvin Anderson, and rookie Caedan Wallace – had their issues at times.
On the interior things looked better, with the more-established group of Mike Onwenu, David Andrews, and Sidy Sow. However, it’s clear there’s going to be a lot on their plate this year helping deal with the inconsistencies on the edges.
Quarterback performances
As mentioned above, the quarterbacks’ performances on Tuesday were impacted heavily by the play of the offensive line. That being said it’s the offensive line these quarterbacks are going to have to play behind this year, so how did they manage it?
Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye both struggled at times. Brissett was 11-of-24 in team drills with two interceptions, although one was the result of a contact drop from Austin Hooper. Maye was 5-of-12, and multiple times left the pocket to find a throw. Again, both performances were impacted by the play of the offensive line.
As for the distribution of reps, the Patriots kept things mainly to those two quarterbacks. Joe Milton and Bailey Zappe each only got one drive in 11-on-11, which came at the very end of practice. Both threw just two passes – Milton completed one and Zappe completed neither.
Pop Douglas causes problems for first-round pick
Pop Douglas has been uncoverable for most of Patriots training camp. Tuesday was a good chance to see if he would continue to have that success against another defense.
Douglas picked right up where he left off, and was one of the top targets of the day for Patriots quarterbacks. For most of practice – including one-on-ones – he was covered by Eagles first-round pick Quinyon Mitchell. Douglas gave Mitchell a ‘welcome to the NFL’ moment in this practice, as the 22nd overall pick struggled to stick with him.
WATCH: Zolak & Barth react to Day 14 of Patriots training camp
Tight end depth
Tight end depth has quickly become a question in this Patriots training camp. With Hunter Henry missing another day, the opportunity was there for somebody else to emerge.
Austin Hooper, who is expected to be the backup tight end, had a mostly positive day. However, his drop leading to the interception did stand out.
The question of who the third tight end will be after Henry and Hooper feels like an open one. The Patriots seem to be giving Mitchell Wilcox every chance to win the job, and he had one of his better days of practice on Tuesday. He’ll need to build on that Thursday though, after a tough performance in the preseason opener.
Catch of the day
For the second day in a row, a rookie wide receiver made the catch of the day for the Patriots. Early in 7-on-7s, Javon Baker beat starting Eagles cornerback Avonte Maddox on a go route on the outside. Jacoby Brissett put the ball out in front of Baker, but just within reach as Baker dove forward full extension and held onto the ball as he hit the ground.
Baker has had a knack for spectacular catches so far in this camp. He’ll need to be more consistent underneath, but he continues to flash impressive potential as a deep threat.
Penalties
For the second day in a row, penalties were an issue for the Patriots offense. They were called for three false starts, and an ineligible man down field penalty. After penalties were an issue in the preseason opener, expect this to be a point of emphasis come Thursday.
Matthew Judon’s presence felt
While the Patriots’ offense had some issues, the defense showed up in a big way. The Eagles had some splash plays, but weren’t able to move the ball consistently on offense.
The biggest reason for that was the pressure the Patriots’ front put on Jalen Hurts. Hurts never looked comfortable in the pocket, and on multiple occasions opted to scramble to nowhere rather than test tight windows in coverage.
At the forefront of that pressure was Matthew Judon. He was consistently in the backfield, causing rushed throws when he didn’t shut the play down. Judon also proved a spark plug against the run, and at one point chased Eagles running back Saquon Barkley 30-plus yards down field when Barkley kept running after the whistle to punch the ball out of Barkley’s arms before he got to the end zone. That drew a big cheer from the crowd.
Judon’s contract remains an unknown, especially after a report on Monday that other NFL teams are calling on his availability. However, after a very public exit from practice two weeks ago he’s come back and looked fully engaged since.
Christian Gonzalez bounces back
Second-year cornerback Christian Gonzalez hasn’t had the camp many expected him to have, but showed up in a big way on Tuesday. In one-on-ones the Patriots seemed to make a point of matching him up with star Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown, and Gonzalez won both of his full-field reps in that drill. Brown’s lone win came on a quick inside slant in the red zone.
In team drills Gonzalez saw more time against DeVonta Smith, and again held one of the top Eagles’ receivers in check. We’ll see if he can match that effort in the game on Thursday, but it was an encouraging day for the 2023 first-round pick.
Patriots kickoffs
Because the rules are so new it’s tough to tell if this was more of a plus for the Patriots or minus for the Eagles, but the Patriots’ kickoffs gave the Eagles return team trouble. One return ended in a fumble, another squib kick disoriented the returner so he fielded the ball with one foot out of bounds inside the five, and another squib kick looked to be rolling into a tough spot before the play ended due to a scrum on the field.
Attendance
Hunter Henry missed practice for the second day in a row, but Jerod Mayo told reporters before practice that he doesn’t expect Henry to miss an extended period of time. Marte Mapu also remains out.
Cornerbacks Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones, and Shaun Wade all returned to practice early after missing previous days. However they only took part in stretching.
Meanwhile, Christian Barmore joined the team on the field midway through practice. It’s the first time Barmore has been on the field with the team since his blood clots diagnosis at the start of camp. Davon Godchaux said after practice it’s the first time his teammates have seen him since, but they have been communicating.
What’s next?
The Patriots will be off on Wednesday. Then, it’s time for Week 2 of the preseason Thursday at Gillette Stadium. Kickoff against the Eagles is set for 7:00.
