FOXBORO — The Patriots offense will be a slow burn.
Progress is the message and focus as they rebuild from the rubble of last season. Mac Jones has dusted himself enough off to believe Bill O’Brien’s system can and should inspire hope, if not belief, for the 2023 season. Life will be different in Foxboro when the Patriots have the ball.
But when they don’t? When Bill Belichick’s defense prowls the field, sneering and hunting from sideline to sideline? Forget hope.
It’s time to convert already.
Early signs are the next Patriots defense will be fast, deep and multiple. Violent, vicious and deceptive. This unit forced Jones and Bailey Zappe to pump the ball and hang in the pocket repeatedly during team drills this spring, including Tuesday’s minicamp practice.
Jones tossed two picks, while thumping safeties, freak man-cover cornerbacks and pass rushers took turns flashing all across the field. Defense dominated every 11-on-11 period to the point players began impressing themselves.
“I’ve never been a part of something so fast like that,” said safety Jabrill Peppers, who individually runs a 4.4.
It may not be until early in the regular season that Jones and Co. find similar cohesion and give reason to celebrate. But the Patriots defense, a top-3 unit last year that Bill Belichick kept almost entirely intact and bolstered with high draft picks this offseason?
Get your popcorn ready.
Here are the rest of the Herald’s observations from practice:
Returned: OT Trent Brown
Absent: WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, OL Mike Onwenu, DL Lawrence Guy, WR Tyquan Thornton, DL Keion White, DB Quandre Mosely, WR Kayshon Boutte
Limited: S Cody Davis
Non-contact jersey: LB Marte Mapu, OL Atonio Mafi
Dress code: Helmets and shorts
Notes: Trent Brown returned to practice, but departed for a lower field after positional drills. He was closer to being a non-participant than a full one. This, of course, hurt the Patriots’ offensive tackle depth. No other absent player from Monday was suited up Tuesday, while second-round rookie Keion White sat out practice after a minor injury scare the day before.
DeVante Parker’s back-corner touchdown
DeAndre who?
Parker staked an early claim to keeping his starting ‘X’ receiver job with a spectacular grab over Jonathan Jones in a 7-on-7 drill early in practice. Mac Jones floated a perfect 30-yard pass into the back left corner, Parker plucked it over Jones’ head and took care of the rest. One of the best contested-catch receivers in the game showed why he has that title Tuesday.
CB Jack Jones
Back-to-back.
Jones wins this award for a second straight practice after snatching an interception for a second straight day. As one play dragged on during 7-on-7 work, he dropped off his assigned receiver to pick a deep Mac Jones pass intended for Hunter Henry on an out-and-up route. Jones also intercepted third-string quarterback Trace McSorley when his starting defense faced the Pats’ scout-team offense in an 11-on-11 period.
Note: The passing stats below were tallied during competitive 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 periods only. Stats in parentheses cover all of minicamp.
Mac Jones: 23/32, 2 INTs (39/50, 2 INTs)
Notes: Here’s the good: Jones was more aggressive, and successfully so, during initial 7-on-7 periods that included the play of the day. He maintained the same command he showed Tuesday. A few problems that cropped up in 11-on-11s — like busted screens — weren’t his fault.
The bad: his other interception was a pass Marcus Jones undercut before it could reach Kendrick Bourne on an in-breaking route during a 2-minute drill. As was the case Monday, it’s unclear how fast the second-string defense should have been playing during that drill. Overall, though, Jones performed OK around a 3-of-7 dry spell in one full-team period against the starting defense. A decent day.
S Joshuah Bledsoe
Remember him? The little-used safety recorded a team-high two pass breakups in team drills, extending himself to bat down a Trace McSorley pass to the flat and blanketing tight end Anthony Firkser to deflect another pass from Bailey Zappe. Bledsoe will need more of these performances to make the team again.
OLB Matt Judon
The Pats’ best pass rusher flexed on new left tackle Calvin Anderson by zipping right by him for the only non-coverage sack in team drills. Judon remains a certified problem.
WR Kendrick Bourne
Despite taking virtually all of the first-team reps, and the absences of JuJu Smith-Schuster and Tyquan Thornton, Bourne failed to register a catch. Quarterbacks went 0-for-2 when targeting him, including Mac Jones’ second interception.
K Chad Ryland
Ryland slipped on his first field goal try and missed a 43-yarder at the end of practice, while incumbent Nick Folk nailed all of his kicks. It’s way too early to move Ryland off being the favorite to win the job, but the rookie surely wants that period back.
