FOXBOROUGH - Thursday’s Patriots practice was arguably the most spirited of the week with a heavy emphasis on game situations in 11-on-11 work, but it doesn’t mean it went super well, especially for the quarterbacks.
It wasn’t the greatest day for all three — Cam Newton, Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer — but they were the victim of a few drops and also not having N’Keal Harry on the field at all, and a limited Julian Edelman (more on that to come). But, for the first time there was some sign that Newton is breaking away from Stidham and Hoyer in terms of the number of reps. It was clear that Newton saw the most reps of the three.
In terms of attendance, Harry, Adrian Phillips, Stephon Gilmore Sony Michel (PUP), Lamar Miller (PUP), Yodny Cajuste, Beau Allen, Derek Rivers and Tashawn Bower were all missing.
Jeff Thomas and Anfernee Jennings were present for the first time this summer, but were limited along with Will Hastings.
Here are some observations from the session.
— Newton did a lot more of what he’s done all week Thursday, which is not make any real spectacular plays, but also not make any real bad ones, either. It’s still clear he’s learning the offense, but as we continue to say, he has nearly a month before an actual game. The QB continues to take coaching well and seems eager to learn the system and find chemistry with his teammates. The energy was there again as well, being the loudest player on the field at times cheering on his teammates, including the other quarterbacks when they made good throws.
— Towards the end of practice it seemed like the Patriots tried to simulate a game as much as possible with first, second and third-down plays with the sticks set up on the sideline. Newton took the first rep in this set and got the most work, which we could be reading too much into things, or not, but perhaps this is a sign that it is in fact his job to lose.
— It is also worth noting we’ve seen some plays called for Newton that would not necessarily be called with Tom Brady at quarterback. He also has shown signs of progress in terms of learning the offense with his reads. In one 11-on-11 rep he went through his reads quickly and then checked down to Rex Burkhead. While it may seem like a minor thing, this was a sign of him picking up the offense.
— Stidham did not have the best day and also saw the fewest reps of the three — so perhaps the two were related. The second-year player threw back-to-back interceptions to Myles Bryant and then Justin Bethel. Following that sequence his reps were very limited. It could have been part of the plan, but also could have been because of the poor play.
— Hoyer had a rough go at times, but part of that could have been his receivers didn’t do him any favors, including running the wrong route at times. He threw his first pick of training camp, which was caught by Bryant.
— Missing Edelman and Harry during team drills certainly had an impact on the quarterback play, as well as the entire offense. This would be the case with any team being down their top two wide receivers, so isn’t anything specific to the Patriots, but it is worth keeping an eye on going forward as the quarterbacks look to gain confidence with the offense.
— Edelman’s situation is certainly worth watching. The 34-year-old was limited on Tuesday and then really did not do much Thursday. Early in the session during 4 vs. 3 drills, Newton just missed him on a crossing route and then he gingerly walked to the sideline and flung his helmet before making his way to head trainer Jim Whalen. A short time later he rode the exercise bike and then after that was mostly a bystander, often times watching the action on one knee. He did not participate in any 11-on-11 work.
— Early in the practice Josh McDaniels worked with the tight ends, which continues his trend of moving around to different positions on the offense.
— Bryant had a good day with two interceptions and a few other deflections. But not taking anything away from him, the interceptions were on very poorly thrown passes.
— Gunner Olszewski continues to impress and it isn’t just making plays on the field. He also just looks more like a NFL wide receiver. Coming into the league last year as a D-II defensive player, it was clear he put the time and effort in over the last year to become a wide receiver. With several other wide outs down, Olszewski continues to make the most of his opportunities.
— Rookie linebacker Cassh Maluia continues to stand out and make plays. If he continues to do what he's doing, the fifth-round pick has a chance of making the team.
— Tackle Korey Cunningham had a great block to spring Burkhead in 11-on-11 work.
— The practice closed with some spirited goal-line work. Linebacker Terez Hall stood out the most in these, making a few plays.
— Owner Robert Kraft came out early in the session to take in a little of the action.