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Indefinite New England Patriots Thread (2 Viewers)

Uruk-Hai said:
I'm not seeing that from Baltimore's perspective. Newton's style of play is completely different than Jackson's. If Lamar Jackson gets hurt, the Ravens are sunk because they've tooled their entire offensive philosophy around him. They could win - at best - maybe 8 or 9 games with the backups they have now, who have been in the system for a couple of years. I don't think Newton would win them any more than that.

And if QB-needy NE (still seems weird typing that) doesn't want Cam Newton, why would Baltimore?
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IMO, of potential back ups available, Cam could best lead a run heavy offense  with the QB heavily involved as a rusher and less use as a passer (but with a lot of throws to TEs). To me, he’d be a decent upgrade over RG3.

There aren’t a lot of teams that play the style that Cam has played, so it makes his value pretty limited across the league. I don’t think he is starter material, and a team would have to run a  secondary offense for Newton as I don’t think he could come in and run a complex pass heavy offense. So I don’t see Cam being a good fit for most teams.

 
I don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves, but the word out of minicamp / OTAs so far has been that this year is light years different than last year or the last couple of Brady years. The culture, the vibe, the enthusiasm, the effort level . . . much more positive and upbeat. All this could be preseason tripe and senseless hype, but the attitude, confidence, and expectation is that they will be a winning, contending team. Receivers going all out to reel in a wayward pass, players working out details and kinks with coaches on the side, some guys being at the facility for 12-14 hours a day. Granted, wanting to win and actually winning are totally different beasts, but things seem to be going well so far.

 
Tid bids from the rainy first day of mandatory OTA's . . . from various sources.

- No one has seen Gilmour, but BB did not indicate if he is or isn't there and if not whether it was excused or unexcused. The media is all over the narrative that he may be holding out until he gets a new deal, more money for this year, or traded. Speculation that he wants a 3 year, $50M extension.

- As an example of being at practice, he cited that Cam practiced last week . . . just not in front of the media.

- Newton seems to not show any ill effects from his hand injury but was a bit all over the place. Mostly mixed reviews. Didn't handle the rain very well, had some wild throws, but also had a couple of nice completions in tight windows so far today. Cam did not wear anything on his injured hand.

- Mac Jones has been pushing the ball down the field more than he did previously when he essentially was Captain Checkdown. From the personnel that have been attached to the information, I am deducing that Jones has been playing with the twos. Maybe they mixed things up and the QBs played with different combos or units, but I haven't seen how they have been doing it so far. But said to have been the best he has looked so far.

- Stidham handled the elements the best and probably was the most accurate and successful of the QBs today.

- Jonnu Smith flashed a lot of speed . . . until he suffered a minor hamstring injury and shut it down for the day.

- N'Keal Harry is said to have slimmed down and has been moving better than in prior seasons. No word on how he fits in, if his hands are any better, or if he has become more consistent.

- Hightower is back on the field, which some people weren't sure was going to happen (myself included) and that he might opt to retire (still could happen).

- Updating what I just listed, it looks like today's QB rotation was Cam, Mac, Stidham, Hoyer (although last year they rotated the order on different days). Still not sure who lined up with which player combos, however.

As a side note, be a little leary of reports of various WR receivers in general. Over the weekend, I saw articles about pretty much Agholor, Bourne, Meyers, and even Zuber as having big roles this year. Buyer beware on any of them, as the team is built around rushing the football and their tight ends. Maybe there will more clarity on the receivers closer to the season, but for now people are way too rainbows and unicorns about how great the receivers will do this year. Lots of mouths to fed and not a lot of food on the plate to divide up.

 
The Gilmore situation is weird. Locally, pretty unanimously the beat guys feel this isn’t must of a story, no one in the building seems to have much concern, and at this point he isn’t going anywhere. 

But nationally, all the talk is about how NE can’t afford him, they have no cap space, and it’s a question of where not if he will get traded.

I haven’t see such different takes and speculation in a longtime. It makes you wonder where the national guys are getting their intel from.

 
Anarchy99 said:
Solid review of NE backfield situation. 

LINK
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If Damien Harris can stay healthy this has a chance to be a very effective group…IMO he is the key to this unit…he runs with a lot of attitude and always seems to be going forward…if he can stay healthy that will mean the other RBs will not have to be asked to do more than they can which means they can carve out their own roles…I am very interested to see what happens with Taylor…he showed a little something last year (in very limited duty) and for him to make it the numbers dictate someone like Michel or White has to go…if he makes the team he is gonna play, they are not gonna give up a roster spot so he can sit on the bench, they will use that roster spot on another position.

On another note, I love the fact the early reports on Barmore seem very positive as there was some question about his commitment…if this kid is all in they got themselves a first round pick in the second round and he has a chance to be a real disruptive force on the interior which they sorely need.

It is only June but so far so good, I think the Pats are gonna be much improved over last year and if Jones is legit they could really surprise.

 
N'Keal Henry is getting a lot of good press.

Do you think the Patriots prefer to keep him rather than looking for trade options.

 
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Rotoworld: The Athletic's Jeff Howe reports Jakobi Meyers has been the Patriots' most consistent receiver in training camp. 

Meyers and Jonnu Smith have reeled in a team-high 15 passes each during practice time with Cam Newton and the starting offense. While N'Keal Harry has drawn some summer buzz and Nelson Agholor is the new guy in town, Meyers has picked up right where he left off last season as New England's top wideout. Meyers can be had at the end of 12-team fantasy drafts.

Meyers gonna be a sleeper monster

 
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Anarchy99 said:
Maybe, maybe not . . . Folk has been a very reliable and dependable kicking option. He's made 89% of his FG attempts since coming to NE (93% last year). He ranked 8th in FG% in 2020. They guaranteed him $1.2M this year already . . . I doubt they will just eat that. It will only cost them an additional $400K to stick with Folk for this season. Maybe they will sign Nordin longer term and leave him on the practice squad as an option for next year (or as insurance if Folk got hurt). But I think most likely Folk is the guy for this year.
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My man giving Nick Folk a run for his money.  

Quinn Nordin’s perfect week inside Gillette continued with a 4-of-4 night on field goals of 48, 33, 43 and 46 yards. He went 14 of 14 in the two stadium practices and should be the sole kicker Thursday due to Folk’s string of absences. Nordin’s chances of making the team have increased by the day.
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johnnycakes said:
My man giving Nick Folk a run for his money.  
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He did miss an XP last night.

The issue is they are unlikely to use two roster spots on PK's. It would cost them $1.2 million to cut Folk, who was every bit as good as Nordin in camp before missing time this week. He made 92.9% of his FGs last year (Nordin made 72% of his FGs in college). BB generally prefers proven commodities over youth and inexperience.

Maybe they do the unthinkable and carry Folk as their FG kicker and keep Nordin as their kickoff kicker. Or maybe they convince Folk to retire and give them their money back. I doubt either of those will happen.

 
Anarchy99 said:
He did miss an XP last night.

The issue is they are unlikely to use two roster spots on PK's. It would cost them $1.2 million to cut Folk, who was every bit as good as Nordin in camp before missing time this week. He made 92.9% of his FGs last year (Nordin made 72% of his FGs in college). BB generally prefers proven commodities over youth and inexperience.

Maybe they do the unthinkable and carry Folk as their FG kicker and keep Nordin as their kickoff kicker. Or maybe they convince Folk to retire and give them their money back. I doubt either of those will happen.
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I think Nordin will get the starting gig. Kid looked pure last night.

 
Anarchy99 said:
He did miss an XP last night.

The issue is they are unlikely to use two roster spots on PK's. It would cost them $1.2 million to cut Folk, who was every bit as good as Nordin in camp before missing time this week. He made 92.9% of his FGs last year (Nordin made 72% of his FGs in college). BB generally prefers proven commodities over youth and inexperience.

Maybe they do the unthinkable and carry Folk as their FG kicker and keep Nordin as their kickoff kicker. Or maybe they convince Folk to retire and give them their money back. I doubt either of those will happen.
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i don’t think you can totally say that about proven commodities…he let AV go and went with a rookie in Gostkowski and he has gone with youngsters at the punting position…not sure what will happen here but if he is comfortable with the rookie I don’t think he will hesitate to go with him…too bad they wasted a #5 on that train wreck last year, gotta believe they thought they had a long-term solution when they made that pick.

 
Do any Patriots fans want Cam to win this job? He has looked awful where Jones has looked quite poised so far from what little I've seen. 

 
ffmail4me said:
Do any Patriots fans want Cam to win this job? He has looked awful where Jones has looked quite poised so far from what little I've seen. 
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Here I am.  When the Pats are 4-0 at the quarter pole with Cam at the helm, let's talk.  Whatever happens, I'll be around, to eat crow or to dish it out.

 
Boston said:
i don’t think you can totally say that about proven commodities…he let AV go and went with a rookie in Gostkowski and he has gone with youngsters at the punting position…not sure what will happen here but if he is comfortable with the rookie I don’t think he will hesitate to go with him…too bad they wasted a #5 on that train wreck last year, gotta believe they thought they had a long-term solution when they made that pick.
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Not apples to apples, but AV wanted top of the market money. SG was a cost effective alternative (that could have not worked out). In this case, NF made 92% of his FG last year and has already been paid for this year. If he’s hurt and can’t kick then obviously that would be an issue. 

 
Anarchy99 said:
Not apples to apples, but AV wanted top of the market money. SG was a cost effective alternative (that could have not worked out). In this case, NF made 92% of his FG last year and has already been paid for this year. If he’s hurt and can’t kick then obviously that would be an issue. 
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What is the prognosis for the Gilmore situation?  Hold my hand and tell me everything will be ok, lol.

 
ffmail4me said:
Do any Patriots fans want Cam to win this job? He has looked awful where Jones has looked quite poised so far from what little I've seen. 
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Would love it if he played well and Jones could sit and develop...that being said I have not seen anything from him that makes me feel he can be a starting QB in the NFL...he is washed up and is just an awful fit for how the Pats want their QB to play.

 
Boston said:
Would love it if he played well and Jones could sit and develop...that being said I have not seen anything from him that makes me feel he can be a starting QB in the NFL...he is washed up and is just an awful fit for how the Pats want their QB to play.
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I agree that if Cam plays this year like he did last year, his days are numbered. However, plenty of people have been to training camp and say Cam looks much better most of the time. I don't know what that means anymore than you do. Maybe that means something, maybe it doesn't.

Sadly, I really thing BB things that if they can get to 20 points they should win every game. I am pretty confident he things great defense, special teams, and running game and minimal turnovers = a W with nominal QB play. Certainly we can debate if the team checks those boxes or not.

There are those that think that with better weapons and a better grasp of the offense, Cam can be average and average can win. No one knows hoe Mac will look when the lights go on and the games count for something.

I already outlined what I thought was going on. If they wanted Jones to be the guy, they would have given him every first team rep since he showed up. So unless Cam gets hurt, I think they will ride with Newton to start the season.

An interesting debate will be if the team is winning and Cam isn't playing great would they pull him if they were say 4-1. The opposite could also be true . . . Cam could play well and they could be 2-4. Would they pull him then?

I am firmly in the camp that the future is Jones and Cam does not seem like he could lead a team to much of anything at this point. Clearly there are others that think other wise or else Mac would already be getting max reps with the 1's.

 
SeniorVBDStudent said:
What is the prognosis for the Gilmore situation?  Hold my hand and tell me everything will be ok, lol.
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Most of the folks I see locally think that everything is fine, things will get worked out, they are looking to move him, and all will be back to normal by the time the season starts.

Curran suggested they might get hive more money in bonuses this year and agree not to franchise him, SG probably won't be thrilled, and they probably get a season where he plays at 80% and is gone next year. Maybe that's where things are headed.

 
Anarchy99 said:
I agree that if Cam plays this year like he did last year, his days are numbered. However, plenty of people have been to training camp and say Cam looks much better most of the time. I don't know what that means anymore than you do. Maybe that means something, maybe it doesn't.

Sadly, I really thing BB things that if they can get to 20 points they should win every game. I am pretty confident he things great defense, special teams, and running game and minimal turnovers = a W with nominal QB play. Certainly we can debate if the team checks those boxes or not.

There are those that think that with better weapons and a better grasp of the offense, Cam can be average and average can win. No one knows hoe Mac will look when the lights go on and the games count for something.

I already outlined what I thought was going on. If they wanted Jones to be the guy, they would have given him every first team rep since he showed up. So unless Cam gets hurt, I think they will ride with Newton to start the season.

An interesting debate will be if the team is winning and Cam isn't playing great would they pull him if they were say 4-1. The opposite could also be true . . . Cam could play well and they could be 2-4. Would they pull him then?

I am firmly in the camp that the future is Jones and Cam does not seem like he could lead a team to much of anything at this point. Clearly there are others that think other wise or else Mac would already be getting max reps with the 1's.
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As discussed there are a group in the media that love Cam...I heard Ben Volin on the radio yesterday and it was actually embarrassing what he had to say about Cam...he really has no clue what he is talking about and I don't think I can ever take him seriously again...I don't think you can ever be sure what BB is going to do...he always surprises so I don't think anything is off the table...think about the past few years...he drafted a QB, RB and a WR in the first round and could not have spent more in free agency than he did this past offseason...those are all things many thought would never happen (and were adamant about it)...without Brady we are in unchartered waters and right now I agree with Curran and Bedard that this is still a legit QB competition.  

 
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Boston said:
As discussed there are a group in the media that love Cam...I heard Ben Volin on the radio yesterday and it was actually embarrassing what he had to say about Cam...he really has no clue what he is talking about and I don't think I can ever take him seriously again...I don't think you can ever be sure what BB is going to do...he always surprises so I don't think anything is off the table...think about the past few years...he drafted both QB, RB and a WR in the first round and could not have spent more in free agency than he did this past offseason...those are all things many thought would never happen (and were adamant about it)...without Brady we are in unchartered waters and right now I agree with Curran and Bedard that this is still a legit QB competition.  
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I guess it depends in what a competition actually means. The way I see it, Cam is up 4 strokes with 3 holes to play. Meaning he would have to have a collapse (I suppose that's possible) while Jones looks unbelievable (I suppose also possible), but overall probably not likely. Or Cam could get hurt and not be ready for Week 1.

If BB really wanted things to be an open competition, he wouldn't have Jones practicing with the second offense against the second and third string defense most of practice. He's been giving him more time with the 1's than he has been in 11-on-11's and two minute drills, but Cam hasn't really worked with the second offense at all.

Up until now, I don't think Cam has been awful in practice (almost everyone suggests he looks better than last year), and most people don't think Jones has been playing lights out (although they think with more time he would be a cleat better option).

Continuing the golf analogy, after the game with WAS, Cam got par on the16th hole and maybe Jones got a birdie, which would now leave Cam up 3 shots with 2 holes to play.

So sure, I'll agree to it being in the realm of outcomes that Jones could end up as the starter, but IMO unless moving forward they start giving him the majority of snaps with the first team offense against the first team defense, then the "competition" is more a narrative that the media is pushing to keep people interested and get more clicks.

Like you said, maybe Bill will continue doing things differently than in year's past. However, them going wild spending in free agency was the telepathed, most likely outcome as they didn't have anyone in house worth re-signing and needed to spend the money some how.

 
Anarchy99 said:
I guess it depends in what a competition actually means. The way I see it, Cam is up 4 strokes with 3 holes to play. Meaning he would have to have a collapse (I suppose that's possible) while Jones looks unbelievable (I suppose also possible), but overall probably not likely. Or Cam could get hurt and not be ready for Week 1.

If BB really wanted things to be an open competition, he wouldn't have Jones practicing with the second offense against the second and third string defense most of practice. He's been giving him more time with the 1's than he has been in 11-on-11's and two minute drills, but Cam hasn't really worked with the second offense at all.

Up until now, I don't think Cam has been awful in practice (almost everyone suggests he looks better than last year), and most people don't think Jones has been playing lights out (although they think with more time he would be a cleat better option).

Continuing the golf analogy, after the game with WAS, Cam got par on the16th hole and maybe Jones got a birdie, which would now leave Cam up 3 shots with 2 holes to play.

So sure, I'll agree to it being in the realm of outcomes that Jones could end up as the starter, but IMO unless moving forward they start giving him the majority of snaps with the first team offense against the first team defense, then the "competition" is more a narrative that the media is pushing to keep people interested and get more clicks.

Like you said, maybe Bill will continue doing things differently than in year's past. However, them going wild spending in free agency was the telepathed, most likely outcome as they didn't have anyone in house worth re-signing and needed to spend the money some how.
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Come on, that last paragraph is way to generic…everyone knows they did it due to horrible drafting but no one saw the magnitude of what they did coming…the only other time they went that hard in free agency was 20 years ago when they signed 100 veterans but they did not target any studs when they did that, it was pretty much all bargain bin shopping with some of the guys being players BB had history with like Otis and Pleasant.

As for this season if I had to bet I would say Newton will start but I fully expect it to be seen as a mistake pretty quickly and Jones will thrive in the same type of role Brady had early in his career.

 
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Boston said:
Come on, that last paragraph is way to generic…everyone knows they did it due to horrible drafting but no one saw the magnitude of what they did coming…the only other time they went that hard in free agency was 20 years ago when they signed 100 veterans but they did not target any studs when they did that, it was pretty much all bargain bin shopping with some of the guys being players BB had history with like Otis and Pleasant.

As for this season if I had to bet I would say Newton will start but I fully expect it to be seen as a mistake pretty quickly and Jones will thrive in the same type of role Brady had early in his career.
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Everyone that covered the Pats indicated they would be going against their pattern and would spend heavily on free agents. With all the money they saved by guys opting out last year, dead money that went away, not many guys worth extending, and not many teams having cap room, they were in great position to restock the roster. We certainly can also debate if they picked the right guys to sign, but we knew they were going out and getting new blood. The surprising part is they brought in 2 TE instead of 1 TE and a true WR1.

Winning cures all ills, and if they get off to a good start with Cam, it will be tough to move away from him. As I posted earlier, once the season starts, most of practice is devoted to the starters and depth guys don't usually practice that much. That also hurts Mac.  

They should be in position to be 3-0 when Brady comes to town. Even with Cam, they could be 6-1 when they travel to play the Chargers (loss to TB, wins against MIA, NYJ, NOS, HOU, DAL, NYJ). The schedule gets tougher after that. So yeah, I think Cam could be mediocre enough for them to win all those games if the other phases of the game are solid (defense, special teams, coaching, run game). If they are 6-1 or 5-2 (or beat TB), do you really see them making a QB change? Similarly, they have a stretch where they play BUF x 2, TEN, and at IND. Seems like a tough stretch to have a rookie step in to start his career. IMO, the most likely outcome is that at some point Cam gets hurt and they keep him out to be extra safe to get an extra long look at Jones. At that point, either he sinks or swims. If they had a decent record and then stepped in, looked bad, and they went 1-3, then I can see them going back to Cam.

IMO, if they really had an interest in giving the keys to Mac, they would have given him way more time with the starters and practice time against the starting defense. But they didn't do that, and as of now, they still haven't done that.

 
Anarchy99 said:
Everyone that covered the Pats indicated they would be going against their pattern and would spend heavily on free agents. With all the money they saved by guys opting out last year, dead money that went away, not many guys worth extending, and not many teams having cap room, they were in great position to restock the roster. We certainly can also debate if they picked the right guys to sign, but we knew they were going out and getting new blood. The surprising part is they brought in 2 TE instead of 1 TE and a true WR1.

Winning cures all ills, and if they get off to a good start with Cam, it will be tough to move away from him. As I posted earlier, once the season starts, most of practice is devoted to the starters and depth guys don't usually practice that much. That also hurts Mac.  

They should be in position to be 3-0 when Brady comes to town. Even with Cam, they could be 6-1 when they travel to play the Chargers (loss to TB, wins against MIA, NYJ, NOS, HOU, DAL, NYJ). The schedule gets tougher after that. So yeah, I think Cam could be mediocre enough for them to win all those games if the other phases of the game are solid (defense, special teams, coaching, run game). If they are 6-1 or 5-2 (or beat TB), do you really see them making a QB change? Similarly, they have a stretch where they play BUF x 2, TEN, and at IND. Seems like a tough stretch to have a rookie step in to start his career. IMO, the most likely outcome is that at some point Cam gets hurt and they keep him out to be extra safe to get an extra long look at Jones. At that point, either he sinks or swims. If they had a decent record and then stepped in, looked bad, and they went 1-3, then I can see them going back to Cam.

IMO, if they really had an interest in giving the keys to Mac, they would have given him way more time with the starters and practice time against the starting defense. But they didn't do that, and as of now, they still haven't done that.
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They knew they would be active but they did not see it at a level that would totally redo the roster with many of the contracts (Smith, Henry, Agholor, Judon) being top of the market deals.

We can go round and round but unless Cam plays differently than I think he does It will be a short leash…I think expecting a D with so many new parts to hit the ground running to cover up for subpar QB play is asking for trouble.

 
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Boston said:
They knew they would be active but they did not see it at a level that would totally redo the roster with many of the contracts (Smith, Henry, Agholor, Judon) being top of the market deals.

We can go round and round but unless Cam plays differently than I think he does It will be a short leash…I think expecting a D with so many new parts to hit the ground running to cover up for subpar QB play is asking for trouble.
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There aren't that many new guys on defense. Hightower is back, Van Noy came back, meaning the only guy that hasn't been there before in the back 7 is Judon (who could be their most useful defender). The guys on the DL are different, but how much impact does that have overall?

 
Anarchy99 said:
There aren't that many new guys on defense. Hightower is back, Van Noy came back, meaning the only guy that hasn't been there before in the back 7 is Judon (who could be their most useful defender). The guys on the DL are different, but how much impact does that have overall?
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The D-line has a ton of new parts, Judon is new, Hightower and Van Noys were gone a year but will probably be fine, Mills is new...I think this D will be very good this year but there is enough turnover and youngsters (Uche, Duggar and possibly Jennings and Bryant as second year players...Barmore and Perkins rookies) now expected to contribute regularly that it may take a few games to become the unit they will become...not everything is best case scenario (as we saw last year) and I can easily see a scenario where they get off to a subpar start if Cam plays like he did last year...the fact they get the Jets twice and the Texans once in the first seven games may cover some warts but if Cam starts off slow and the Pats lose one of those first three games and he looks like trash against Tampa I think Foxboro could get very ugly during that game.

 
No team in the league has a broader range of outcomes this season. NE could win anywhere from 6 to 12 games and there are probably clear paths to both of those. With good health, things clicking, and good QB play I can see them in the playoffs again with 11 or 12 wins. With injuries, another COVID outbreak, no chemistry, and poor QB play they could be a mess. I happen to think last year was a reset year and they are back on track to being in the mix again, but clearly that is far from a given at this stage. However, top to bottom, this squad might be more talented than the team that beat the Rams in the SB a couple of years ago. That doesn't mean they will get anywhere near that far, but that team got a lot of mileage out of a team that probably wasn't  as talented as their other title winning teams.

 
Odds are mine so may not agree with professional odds...I bolded larger underdog spreads.....as mentioned, the early part of the schedule is easier than the second part....

Miami at home -2.5, Jets away -7.5, Saints at home -1.0, Bucs home  +6.5, Texans away - 9, Cowboys at home + 0.5, Jets at home - 8

The remaining 10 games are tougher:

Chargers away + 1.5, Panthers away -6.5, Browns at home +5.5, Falcons away -2.5, Titans at home -1, Bills away +6, Colts away +1.5, Bills at home +2.5, Jags at home -7.5, Fish away -1.5

Week 1 versus Flores, a strong defense and a mobile QB is fascinating.  Clearly Matt Jones is not winning that game (giving props to Miami) from an oddsmakers perspective.

I think Cam needs to start 3-1....then 5-3...then 6-4....to keep his job.  Inserting Jones after Tampa, after the Cowboys, or after the Browns provide temporary soft spots in the schedule to facilitate transition points if these win loss rates are not achieved.

Now it gets weird...assuming 6-4 win/loss or better after 10 games....

It would be easy for NE to then lose the next 5 games in a row and be 6-9, at which point you let Jones play the Jags at home and Miami away to finish out the year...maybe scrounging an 8-9 record and getting into the playoffs nfc east style.  Or after starting 6-4 as above, NE could win 6 of the last 7 and finish 12-5.  These are the "boundary cases" that Anarchy alluded to in the broad distribution of outcomes.

The last "gentle" insertion point for Jones is after the Browns game...after that its a dog fight and I'd be surprised to see a late season transition.  More likely I think the most likely scenarios are (A) the Pats fail to be 3-1 after the Bucs game, (B) Jones comes in for game 16, or (C) Cam plays all year and the Pats make the playoffs.

I put those odds at 40% / 20% / 40% and I think the Shark Pool puts them at 70% / 30% / 0%.

 
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Anarchy, can you share your NE RB carry/receptions/touches breakdown.  I'd be very interested to see what you are forecasting.

 
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Reports out of the joint practice in PHI . . .

Cam STILL was the first man up and played with the starters while Mac mostly played with the second team offense and the Eagles backup defenders. Cam did not look great while Mac was said to do pretty well. Better stated, Cam would make some good throws and then throw in a stinker for an INT or throw a ball that no one could identify who the target was. Jones practiced with some type of brace or sleeve on his knee (not there previously).

Agholor looked bad in 1v1's but did great in 11-on-11s (5 catches including 2 bombs). Harry looked phenomenal in 1v1's but not as good 11-on-11s (that's been his MO all training camp), although he did score on a pass from Jones.

Sony Michel still getting used a lot in the passing game and said to be smooth and looking good while doing it. Stevenson saw more work than the first two weeks of practice.

Jonnu Smith was present but DNP (hurt his ankle yesterday).

If BB intends on playing Mac Jones as his starting QB, he certainly has an odd way of showing it. Cam continues to get a much greater share working with the starters. Jones likely had LESS time with the starters today than he did prior to facing WAS the other night. From today's practice, the breakdown was pretty much starter's reps for Cam and Jones treated like a clear backup QB. Maybe they change that up tomorrow or in the upcoming weeks, but if they are considering Mac as the guy they need to get him in with the starters against top tier defenders.

 
Real nice first half...Newton played about as well as he can and Jones already looks like a veteran...the throw that Harry dropped was big time...if I could trust Cam to play like this all the time I could get onboard with starting the year with him but I still don't trust him...Meyers is a lot better than people realize...the RBs are a very nice unit...Harris runs really hard, Michel looks reborn and as Anarchy has said it appears they may actually use him in the receiving game and I think they may have hit a home run with Stevenson in the 4th round...Nordin probably ended any threat to Folk tonight...defensively all was good!

 
Boston said:
Real nice first half...Newton played about as well as he can and Jones already looks like a veteran...the throw that Harry dropped was big time...if I could trust Cam to play like this all the time I could get onboard with starting the year with him but I still don't trust him...Meyers is a lot better than people realize...the RBs are a very nice unit...Harris runs really hard, Michel looks reborn and as Anarchy has said it appears they may actually use him in the receiving game and I think they may have hit a home run with Stevenson in the 4th round...Nordin probably ended any threat to Folk tonight...defensively all was good!
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Pats 1s versus Eagles 2s, so can't read a lot into things, but it was nice to see the running game coming into shape.  By my eye, Michel looks >>>>>>> Harris and the rookie despite the latter two getting short TDs.  He's pretty much free at his ADP.

Despite going 8-9, Cam looked a little gun shy to me...holding the ball until receivers were wide open and then throwing (unnecessary velocity) bullets (same old issues with touch and velocity).

A little bit more of a shaky performance from Jones this week versus last which I found odd given he came in while it was still 1s versus 2s.  I remain convinced that Cam starts the season and things will be re-evaluated after week 4 (Miami Week 1, Tampa Week 4).

Meyers looks like the WR to have, thus far anyway.  

Agree on Nordin.  Push a FG and an XP wide right was not a good look especially since its been reported he's had issues in practice.

 
I thought Cam played like he knew his job was on the line and played really well.

Mac Jones throws another beautiful deep ball that bounced of Nkeal f'n Harry's wrist. Jones will be starting sooner rather than later but Cam solidified his early season hold on the starting job for now.

Thats all I got, other than Nordin will be bordin the ww bus........

 
I only saw a little bit, but that rookie RB looked really good.  He could be a nice FF find this year, especially since I would imagine the Patriots will be running the ball a lot. 

 
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