12 takeaways from the Patriots’ second preseason game
What we learned from the Patriots’ Week 2 preseason matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles.
On Thursday night at Gillette Stadium the Patriots played their second of three preseason games this season, hosting the Philadelphia Eagles. The Patriots lost the game 14-13, but as is always the case in the preseason it’s the individual takeaways that are important when looking at this one, not the final result.
In the new preseason format, the second game is the one that generally proves to be the biggest pivot point for players trying to earn a roster spot or win a job on the depth chart. In this case, it was also an excellent learning opportunity as the Patriots played their starters and key backups much more than they did last week against the Panthers.
So what did we learn? Let’s take a look at tonight’s takeaways…
Drake Maye’s mostly encouraging night
After playing only seven snaps last week, third overall pick Drake Maye got four series in Week 2 of the preseason. That included two with the majority of the starters – including the starting line minus David Andrews (Nick Leverett took over at center at that point). Overall, it was an encouraging night for the young quarterback.
Maye showed great poise in the pocket, adjusting when needed to give himself time to throw the ball. The best example of this came on a third down on Maye’s first drive, when a subtle movement gave him the room he needed to hit Javon Baker over the middle for a first down. There were a few chances for Maye on the deep ball as well, but while he delivered plus throws twice Baker couldn’t make a play on the other end (more on that in a bit).
On top of that, Maye was able to extend and create plays with his legs. He looked good throwing on the run, scrambled a few times, and scored the Patriots lone touchdown of the game on a read-option keeper.
It wasn’t all perfect for Maye though. He sailed two throws high – one which was almost picked off – and was part of a fumble under-center exchange. There was another play where he took a big sack after holding the ball too long in the pocket. Overall though, it was an encouraging night for Maye in his first real extended taste of NFL action. He looked loose, comfortable, and confident. He finished 6-of-11 for 47 yards throwing the ball, with four carries for 15 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Checking in on the other quarterbacks
Drake Maye wasn’t the only quarterback to play in this game. All four of the Patriots’ QBs got at least some run.
For Jacoby Brissett, it was a rough outing. His accuracy wasn’t where it’s been for most of camp. He missed open receivers multiple times, and threw an interception when targeting a well-covered Austin Hooper in the end zone (Brissett said he and Hooper “weren’t on the same page” on that play after the game). Brissett’s final stat line had him going 3-of-7 for 17 yards with the pick.
Joe Milton was, well, Joe Milton. The play that probably best sums up his night came midway through the fourth quarter. He rolled the wrong way on play-action, but managed to evade two defenders and zip a pass off-balance almost 40 yards on a rope to receiver David Wallis, hitting Wallis in the hands before a hit broke up the play. Milton also delivered a pretty convincing hit stick on a scramble. At the end of the day Milton completed two of his seven pass attempts for 20 yards, while rushing for nine yards on three carries.
Bailey Zappe got the final drive of the game, and moved the ball a bit distributing shorter passes to give players chances to create after the catch. However his drive ended early when a bad snap led to a turnover and ended the game. Before that Zappe was 3-of-4 for 29 yards.
Offensive line
Thursday night wasn’t nearly as bad as Tuesday’s joint practice for the Patriots offensive line. Granted, some of that was because the Eagles didn’t play their starters. Still, there were two glaring issues from the game.
One was the continued lack of Vederian Lowe started again, and got beat clean multiple times to allow pressures. He also committed the Patriots’ lone penalty of the game – a false start on Drake Maye’s first drive. With just one preseason game left the coaching staff needs to finalize an initial starting five within the next week, and there should be consideration given to Lowe’s place within that group. Caedan Wallace could get a look there after a solid while unspectacular performance in the game between right and left tackle.
The other issue for the Patriots’ offensive line in this game? Snapping the football. There were two fumbled snaps, one between Drake Maye and Nick Leverett and another between Bailey Zappe and Liam Fornadel, who just started getting center reps in recent practices. Leverett has been solid at center for most of the summer and seems to be the favorite to win the job backing up David Andrews, but more bad snaps would quickly call that into question.
Cleaner operation
As mentioned above, the Patriots only were called for one penalty in this game. That was after struggling with procedural penalties throughout the game last week.
Overall, the whole operation felt cleaner – especially offensively. In addition to limiting penalties the Patriots also didn’t seem to have any issues in terms of substitutions or major miscommunications. There was one instance where they had to call a timeout in the fourth quarter before an obvious punting situation, but that was really it. It was a clean game in that regard.
Rookie wide receivers
Good news and bad news when it comes to the Patriots’ rookie wide receivers. Let’s do the good news first.
Ja’Lynn Polk really showed something in this game. Early on he got open deep on a go route up the sideline, and would have had a big play if Jacoby Brissett didn’t overthrow him. Later on he showed off short-area quickness, making two defenders miss after the catch to pick up a first down. Polk’s performance was one of the bigger bright spots of the night for the Patriots.
Meanwhile, fellow rookie Javon Baker came away showing room for improvement. A couple of miscues took away potential deep completions for Drake Maye. On one go route, he was boxed into the boundary by Eagles cornerback Kelee Ringo, and ended up running his route out of bounds. Although Maye threw him the ball, he wasn’t able to make the catch because he would have been penalized for illegal touching if he did. In the future he needs to keep that route in bounds, even with tight coverage.
Baker also had a rough drop later in the game, when Maye put a ball on his hands deep over the middle on a third down. It was a diving attempt, and Baker lost the ball when he hit the ground. For a player who is projected to make a living on highlight big plays rather than consistent production, it’s the kind of play he needs to make. That play also continued a pattern of drops that have been an issue for Baker throughout camp.
Wide receiver bubble
Kayshon Boutte continues to stack days this summer, and did so with a solid performance on Thursday night. He led the team with three catches for 23 yards, highlighted by a one-handed snag in the flat on a ball that sailed on Drake Maye.
Boutte wasn’t the only bubble receiver who popped Thursday night. Jalen Reagor didn’t play much on offense in this one (he had one catch for seven yards) but did show up on special teams when he was able to wiggle around would-be tacklers to create a plus kick return.
Coming away from Thursday night and this week as a whole, those two seem to have the inside track on the final roster spots on the wide receiver position. Meanwhile Tyquan Thornton will face an uphill battle over this final week of the preseason to earn a roster spot.
Defense turns up the pressure
Maybe it was a great speech pregame, pent up frustration from the Matthew Judon trade, or just the nasty weather, but something got into the Patriots’ defense as a whole on Thursday night. They were playing with big-time aggression, delivering big hits throughout the game.
They also got after the Eagles up front. In total the Patriots recorded five sacks and six more quarterback hits on 42 drop backs from the Eagles’ quarterbacks. Some of that was the Eagles not playing their starting offense in the game, but overall it looked like what a starting defense against a backup offense should look like.
Making a push for the roster
Two defensive players projected to be on the bubble made the most of their opportunities Thursday night. Linebacker Raekwon McMillan started the game and repeatedly found his way into the Eagles’ backfield. He showed up on multiple run stops, and finished with a team-high nine tackles.
The other standout in this category was safety Joshuah Bledsoe. In particular Bledsoe popped most as a pass rusher, causing pressure on multiple blitzes. It was a good night for him after a quieter game in the preseason opener.
Key players playing late?
Two other Patriots defenders projected to play key roles this year both played late into this game. Cause for concern?
One of those players was outside linebacker Joshua Uche, whose role is likely about to grow significantly following the Matthew Judon trade. However, his involvement late in the game was likely a product of a training camp fight he was in during joint practices. Prior to that practice Jerod Mayo told reporters that “my message to the players [is] kif you get in a fight out here, if you’re a starter, you’re going to play the whole preseason game.” This was likely just Mayo following through on that promise.
The same can’t be said for defensive lineman Armon Watts, who was one of the Patriots’ first signings in free agency. Watts really hasn’t done much to stand out in this camp, while other interior defensive players like Jeremiah Pharms and Trysten Hill have stepped up. Could his roster spot be in jeopardy?
Rookie cornerback struggles
Watching the game live, this appeared to be a rough night for Marcellas Dial. He looked to be in primary coverage on multiple Eagles completions, especially late in the game. That included getting beat on the game-winning two-point conversion. At a deep cornerback position he’s a bubble player, and while his full body of work still may land him a roster spot tonight didn’t help his case.
Wallis still in the mix?
UDFA receiver David Wallis out of Division-III Randolph-Macon has caught the attention of fans with his plays in the return game this preseason. Thursday night saw highs and lows for him in that regard.
The good? A 53-yard kick return late in the game, his second big return of the preseason. However, he also muffed a punt and instead of falling on the ball tried to pick it up and run with it, only to struggle to actually pick the ball up. He fell on it eventually, but the decision opened the door for a near-Eagles recovery.
On top of his returns, Wallis also caught two passes for 16 yards. He is still most likely a practice squad candidate for the Patriots.
Kickers
It was another good night for Joey Slye, who hit field goals from 45 and 51 yards. Meanwhile, Chad Ryland got just one extra point attempt, which he hit.
At this point Slye is going first in the kicker rotation, got the lone attempt in walkthroughs before the game, and has proven to be more of a weapon from deep. He certainly seems to have the inside track on the job, and with roster cuts approaching quickly it seems like it would take a lot at this point for the battle to swing in Ryland’s favor. Pending something wild, this competition may be over.
