1 – “Find your why” is a motivational message for many football coaches at all levels.
But for the 2022 Patriots “Why?” seemed to be an issue.
Many outsiders wondered why Matt Patricia and Joe Judge were running the New England offense, why Bill Belichick would make such a seemingly suspect decision.
As the spring, summer and season wore on the offense became dysfunctional, with quarterback Mac Jones the face of the frustrations.
Jones had often declared himself a “why” guy, a player who needed to know the reasons behind each and every play, formation or schematic adjustment. Those reasons just didn’t seem to be there and make sense last season.
“Why” may have been a major problem for Jones and the Patriots a year ago, but this week New England’s third-year passer revealed that’s no longer a concern under offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien.
“I think there's still things we need to work on, but I do think that the rules and standards have been set. So, we just have to meet that as players,” Jones said. “I think the coaches have done a great job. OB [Bill O'Brien] lays out the operation times, what we're trying to get out of a play, all that stuff, the why behind a play. So, he definitely lays it all out there; we've just got to go out there and try, each day, to clean it up each day and then also get a little bit faster, too, right? You want to play fast; you want to be precise and all that as well.”
The Patriots offense has much higher hopes and expectations this season than the rudderless unit we saw a year ago and Jones sounds confident he knows why that is.
2 – There is indeed plenty to like about what’s been seen from O’Brien, Jones and the new-look New England offense through a week-plus of training camp. But depth is not one of those things. One significant takeaway from the practice fields of Foxborough is that the Patriots are not only lacking elite talent in some areas but also face depth issues on the offensive line, at running back and on the back end of the depth chart at both tight end and wide receiver. If the offense is going to reach its upside potential in 2023 it will likely require some good fortune in terms of health.
3 – Load management has been a topic in training camp over the last week thanks to the limited work that Matthew Judon, Trent Brown and to some degree Rhamondre Stevenson took part in. Clearly Judon’s focus primarily on conditioning was related to his contract issues that resulted in a restructured deal. Could the same be true for Brown, who’s in the final year of his contract and according to Spotrac is set to earn $11 million in new money this season? It’s hard to imagine that given Brown’s lackluster play and engagement at times. If the lack of participation in practice is indeed due to load management this summer as some have suggested, then why haven’t key older cogs like Matthew Slater, David Andrews, Lawrence Guy, Deatrich Wise, Adrian Phillips, Hunter Henry and others taken part in the limited practice participation?
4 – While initial reports did their best to fluff up the numbers on Judon’s restructured contract, as so often is the case with NFL deals the details were less lucrative. The four-time Pro Bowl linebacker essentially got his 2023 salary guaranteed, a reported small $3 million bump in cash for this season and can earn up to $18 million total. New England did the right thing by addressing the contract of a guy who’s done all the right things on and off the field since he arrived in Foxborough, but it wasn’t exactly the big payday that some might have you believe.
5 – Fans and media got a chance to see the new massive video board at Gillette Stadium during Friday night’s practice session. There is no question that the board, new bigger lighthouse and closed-in nature of the north end zone area are going to affect conditions this fall, especially in the kicking game. And while some will use the upgrades and video board costs as a snarky line when discussing disappointment in the roster construction, NFL games are still entertainment and the work at Gillette will improve the game day experience for all fans. And are we really going to pretend that when Matt Groh and Bill Belichick were preparing a contract offer for then-free agent wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins that they somehow had the costs of the new video board in mind? That’s ridiculous on so many levels.
6 – The Patriots have donned full pads for a handful of sessions over the last week, including some rare full-contact drills and live tackling. But the physicality, especially for young players, will ramp up this week when the Texans come to town for the preseason opener Thursday night at Gillette. If we were to pick one player from each side of the ball we’re most intrigued to see in live action it would be second-year running back Kevin Harris and rookie third-round linebacker/safety Marte Mapu, although his status may be in question given that he still practices in a red, non-contact jersey as he works back from a torn pectoral suffered in workouts last February.
7 – We said it here a week ago and will say it again: the work of rookie punter Bryce Baringer is literally a sight to behold on the practice field. The sixth-round pick out of Michigan absolutely crushes the football at times both in terms of height and distance that can leave onlookers in awe. It will be interesting to see what the young special teamer does in game situations, but there is no question he has the raw power to be the kind “weapon” Belichick has lusted after at the position for years.