Patriots Training Camp Observations: Everything We Saw On Day 7

FOXBORO, Mass. — Here’s everything we observed Wednesday on Day 7 of New England Patriots training camp:

ATTIRE
After back-to-back days in full pads, the Patriots dialed down the intensity Wednesday, returning to helmets and shells.

Head coach Bill Belichick said NFL rules would have allowed the Patriots to practice in pads, but he opted not to.

“We could do pads three days in a row,” Belichick said before practice, “but then there are some other — we’re not going to. We’re in shells today.”

ATTENDANCE
Cornerback Malcolm Butler missed his first practice of training camp. Butler, who retired before last season, has had an up-and-down summer as he attempts an NFL comeback. He was present Wednesday but wore workout clothes and worked on a separate rehab field.

Quarterback Brian Hoyer, safety Devin McCourty, running back Rhamondre Stevenson, defensive end Deatrich Wise and wide receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey all dressed for practice but were limited participants, joining Butler on the side field.

This was Hoyer’s first appearance at practice since Day 2 of camp. He had been dealing with an illness, per a report from The Athletic’s Jeff Howe.

Rookie running back Pierre Strong remained on the main field longer than he had in any camp practice to date, taking part in positional drills but exiting before the first team period. We’ve yet to see the speedy South Dakota State product take part in any competitive drills, but this was a step forward for Strong as he works his way back from an undisclosed injury.

Undrafted rookie edge rusher DaMarcus Mitchell also retired to the side field during practice.

NOT PRACTICING
CB Malcolm Butler
S Jabrill Peppers
TE Dalton Keene
RB James White (physically unable to perform list)
OL Chasen Hines (non-football injury list)
OL Andrew Stueber (NFI)

LIMITED
QB Brian Hoyer
S Devin McCourty
RB Rhamondre Stevenson
DE Deatrich Wise
WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey
RB Pierre Strong
DL DaMarcus Mitchell

A new Patriots linebacker made his practice debut, with Nate Weiland taking the field in No. 59 after signing Tuesday.

QB REPORT
Wednesday’s slower pace and lack of full contact yielded more positive results for the offense, which had struggled in the previous several practices.

Mac Jones completed all but two of his 18 pass attempts in competitive team drills, going 6-for-6 in 7-on-7s and 10-for-12 in 11-on-11s.

One of Jones’ incompletions was an interception by Terrance Mitchell, which resulted from an apparent miscommunication with wide receiver DeVante Parker. Jones sailed a pass over Parker’s head as the wideout stopped his route, resulting in an easy pick for Mitchell. The QB and wideout huddled after that play to talk out their mixup.

Jones’ other miss was a throwaway forced by pressure from Matthew Judon. That came on his third-to-last rep of practice, during a red-zone 11-on-11 period. Jones took a “sack” from unblocked linebacker Mack Wilson two plays later, so the day ended inauspiciously for New England’s offense.

Overall, that Jones-led unit operated more smoothly than it did Monday and Tuesday, but it also wasn’t facing a full-speed pass rush or real run defense. The Patriots will want to see similar improvement in the next padded practice.

Rookie Bailey Zappe was 5-for-6 in 7s and 12-for-16 in 11s, taking all second-team reps with Hoyer still unavailable. The fourth-round draft pick has seen a heavy workload this summer.

PLAY OF THE DAY
Not much to report in the standout plays department, but Kristian Wilkerson did beat Shaun Wade for a nice sideline catch from Zappe in 11-on-11s.

Zappe peppered Wilkerson with targets throughout the day, going 6-for-7 when targeting the third-year wideout.

ASSORTED NOTES
— After being repeatedly stuffed on outside-zone runs during Tuesday’s practice, the Patriots placed a heavy emphasis on those types of plays during the first 11-on-11 period, clearly looking to clean up some issues from the previous day.

Again, there isn’t much to glean from running plays in non-padded practices. We’ll see how everything looks there once the pads come back on.

— Ty Montgomery had another active day, seeing even more backfield work with Stevenson limited. Montgomery caught all five of his targets and took four handoffs in team drills — including some in the red zone — continuing to build his case for a roster spot as a multi-positional player.

Montgomery is a strong candidate to fill the Brandon Bolden role as a core special teamer who also can contribute offensively — contributions New England might need if White can’t recover from hip surgery and Strong’s ongoing limitations delay his NFL development.

And, unlike Bolden, Montgomery also plays wide receiver. When we release our next 53-man roster projection, he’ll be on the right side of the cutline.

— Jones completed every pass he threw during 7-on-7s, but he appeared frustrated after two of them, throwing his hands up after a slightly mistimed completion to Parker and again after checking down to Montgomery. Still working out some kinks with a couple of his new receivers.

During an extended run for Zappe in the same 7-on-7 period, Jones stood next to linebackers coach Steve Belichick as he watched from behind the play.

— Adrian Phillips, Marcus Jones and Kyle Dugger had pass breakups.

Phillips swatted down a flea-flicker deep ball to Josh Hammond, Jones got his hand on an underneath pass to Tre Nixon and Dugger denied a would-be touchdown to Matt Sokol. All three came on throws by Zappe.

— Kendrick Bourne danced in the end zone after a touchdown pass from Zappe. J.J. Taylor celebrated one of his own by somersaulting in the end zone.

— After the first-team offense and defense finished their first stretch of 11-on-11 reps, running back Damien Harris and cornerback Jalen Mills spent several minutes playfully jawing at one another from opposite sidelines.

Harris has been one of the most visibly energetic players in camp.

— Tight end Devin Asiasi had a lone drop of practice, flubbing a slant pass from Zappe. Overall, though, this has been a solid camp for Asiasi, who so far looks like the clear TE3 behind Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith.

— Second-year pro Joshuah Bledsoe — a standout performer in Week 1 of camp — saw some run with the top defensive unit with Peppers out and McCourty limited.

With McCourty turning 35 this weekend, the Patriots seem to be managing his workload this summer, with some veteran rest days built in.

“Now that he’s into this stage in his career, he might do it a little bit different than a rookie coming fresh on the scene having to prove himself on every rep,” safeties coach Brian Belichick said Saturday.

It’s not like McCourty needs the extra reps. He hasn’t missed a game since 2015 and led the Patriots in defensive snaps in each of the last two seasons.

— One (excellent) name to keep in mind for your roster projections: Arlington Hambright.

The former Chicago Bears offensive lineman has seen reps with the first-team offense in each of the last two practices, subbing in for Mike Onwenu at right guard on occasion.

Hambright spent all of last season on Chicago’s practice squad after appearing in nine games as a rookie in 2020. There are roster spots up for grabs at the bottom of the Patriots’ O-line depth chart, and the 26-year-old’s stock seems to be on the rise.

— Marcus Jones, Myles Bryant and Tre Nixon practiced punt returns. Jones, a third-round rookie who had nine return touchdowns in college, looks like the early favorite to win that job.

— In one early drill, Patriots cornerbacks worked on their concentration and hand-eye coordination by intercepting tennis balls lofted into the corner of the end zone by team staffers.

UP NEXT
The Patriots’ next practice is scheduled for Thursday at 9:30 a.m. ET. That should be a steamy one, with the Foxboro forecast calling for temperatures near 95 degrees.

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