On Sunday, the Patriots were back on the practice field for day 13 of training camp - the final practice of camp season open to the public.
The focus of Sunday’s practice was the red zone, and it looked like the defense had one of their best days of training camp thus far, particularly in the secondary.
But it was a veteran member of that secondary’s usage on Sunday that continued raising eyebrows for both fans and media alike:
Kyle Dugger.
Heading into the second year of a four-year, $58 million deal, Dugger was fully running with the second unit during 11-on-11 periods, marking another day of camp where safeties other than Dugger stood out in coverage.
At 29 years old, Dugger never quite looked like himself in 2024, as the 2020 second round pick out of Division II’s Lenoir-Rhyne never fully recovered from a high ankle sprain sustained Week 4 against the 49ers. Even though Dugger still managed to play 13 games last season, his ankle ultimately needed surgery early in the offseason.
Whether or not Dugger is still limited because of that surgically repaired ankle is up for debate. What we do know is Dugger has struggled throughout camp, seeing his first-team reps continue to dwindle as August progresses. And as New England installs a new defense under first-year defensive coordinator Terrell Williams, missing key reps with the top defensive unit is a bad sign for a player with a big contract coming off a bad season.
If the Patriots were to cut Dugger, his dead cap hit would be split between this season and next, with $14.25 million in 2025 and $9 million in 2026. For a team with over $60 million remaining in cap space for this season, the Patriots could feasibly stomach that cost.
And if they’d like to move on from Dugger, this may be the route they have to go, as trading a struggling player with cap hits the next three seasons of $15.2 million, $17 million and $18 million will be difficult.
As Dugger’s stock falls, rookie safety Craig Woodson’s has continued to climb, as the Cal-product continued seeing first team reps on Sunday.
His best play of the day came during an 11-on-11 period, as the 24-year-old nearly came down with an interception at the goal line on a bad pass from Drake Maye.
“It hit the ground, but I should’ve made it look like I had it and ran the other way,” Woodson told the media after practice. “I guess I’ll learn from that. But in those types of situations, you just got to play it off like [you caught it].”
While Woodson is already sharing first team reps with Jabrill Peppers and Jaylinn Hawkins, he recognizes that guys like that can teach him a lot as he continues getting acclimated to the pro game.
“I just watch the way that [Peppers] plays,” Woodson told me on the 6 Rings Podcast after practice. “Like, he plays very physical, one speed. And you know, that’s something that I admire as a safety.
“Because in this league - like, plays are happening fast. So for him to be able to play fast and recognize things, and also be able to have that ability of playing the slot, that makes a huge impact. And I wanna be able to have that versatility. So just watching him, and watching others guys as well. Like the way they prepare and the way they practice, I think it just kind of makes me wanna practice the same way.”
Woodson was a fourth round pick this past spring, being selected 106th overall with six safeties being drafted in front of him.
But come Week 1 against the Raiders at Gillette Stadium, that won’t matter.
As it stands right now, Woodson looks to be a huge part of this defense from the jump for the 2025 season.
Stay locked in to WEEI and WEEI.com for all the latest from Patriots training camp.