1. After what we’ve seen this spring, it’s very clear there will be a quarterback competition this summer between Cam Newton and Mac Jones. It will be interesting to see how the Patriots handle it, especially when it comes to reps in team periods during training camp and then once preseason games roll around. As of now, Newton has gone first in all the reps, but during 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 work the other players are mixed, so it’s not a true first-team, second-team, etc. situation. That will change come training camp, so will Newton get the bulk of the reps with the first-team one day and then Jones the next? Will they sub in and out more? And then what about the preseason games — same deal. Both quarterbacks will need as much work as they can get with the top players and it will be up to the coaching staff to determine the best course of action on how to do that. But there will be a point as the preseason nears its end where the team will need to decide on a starter because things then shift towards planning for Miami Week 1 of the regular season. Not only deciding on who plays in the preseason finale, but also what’s done in practice. We’re not pretending to have an answer on what the best course of action is, but it will be fascinating to see what is done in order to give each player the best chance to ultimately win the job.
2. Along these lines, something to watch is how Newton handles it, especially if he struggles a bit and Jones is progressing nicely. We saw a glimpse of that last week during minicamp when Newton had some bad sequences and he clearly was frustrated and stood off to the side and wasn’t his normal energetic self. If Jones is the starter, would the Patriots keep Newton in a backup role, especially with Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer on the roster? Would Newton even want to be a backup? We’ll see how things play out come early September.
3. Something to watch with new wide receiver Kendrick Bourne is dropped passes. He had several days this spring where those plagued him and then someone who watched a lot of 49ers games the last few seasons said that was an issue there as well. Given the contract he received this offseason, he will be on the roster, but in order to stay on the field he’s going to need to keep his drops to a minimum.
4. Speaking of the wide receiver position, it’s really anyone’s guess who would start if the games were to begin this week. With tight ends Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith expected to be on the field as much as possible, it would seem there will be a lot of two tight end, two wide receiver sets. So, who would those two receivers be? Right now, it would likely be Jakobi Meyers and Nelson Agholor. Meyers has been the most consistent receiver this spring and the Agholor has the ability to stretch the field, which could open things up for the tight ends.
5. Josh Uche was one of the most impressive defensive players for the Patriots this spring. While it was just in t-shirts and shorts, the second-year player was always in the backfield during team work and based on what we saw seems primed for a big Year 1 to Year 2 jump. The Michigan product attended Von Miller’s pass-rush summit a few weeks back. “I’ve been looking up to Von since I was little,” Uche said this week after a minicamp session. “For him to invite me … and just talk about our craft, pass-rushing, it was a dream come true.”
6. Ernie Adams got his sendoff into retirement from the team on Thursday, as it was his final practice as director of football research. It was also nice of the team to make him available to the media for the first time during his 21-plus years with the organization. While Adams won’t be working for the team in an official capacity, it seems like a good bet that he’ll stick around and be available for whatever Bill Belichick might need.
7. It seems likely the Patriots will have at least one joint practice this summer, but nothing has been officially announced. Belichick said last week the team is still waiting on official word from the league on what things will look like with training camp. “We're still working through some details and logistics on training camp and that includes whatever we might do with another team,” he said. “We still really don't have any or a great direction from the league on training camp. We have some information, but there's still some other information that is outstanding and so, when we get everything, we'll put it all together but we're not quite there yet.”