FOXBOROUGH - Rookie quarterback Ryan Mallett has been inactive for each of the Patriots’ 10 games, but coach Bill Belichick reported yesterday that the third-round pick from Arkansas is making progress.
He is “absolutely’’ still doing extra work after practice, Belichick said. During training camp, Mallett often spent time working on his footwork, either tethered to bungee cords or using a rope ladder, following instruction from strength and conditioning coach Harold Nash.
But he hasn’t been in any game situations since camp, and that’s where a quarterback can really develop.
“I think at that position, so much of it is about playing,’’ Belichick said. “Certainly from a mechanics standpoint, a physical standpoint, I think he’s made a lot of improvements, as [Tom] Brady did. Brady’s rookie year, he was like 205 or 207 [pounds]. He gained a lot of strength in both his upper and his lower body. That’s helped him, both in throwing and taking hits, durability, and all that. Ryan’s definitely gotten on that program. He spends a lot of time in the weight room and doing what we ask him to do.
“A lot of his job is working with the defense, but he gets the opportunity to work with some of our other receivers after practice. Also one of the good things about the backup quarterback is he’s always working against our defense . . . I think those reps are good too, because as a quarterback you make that competitive. You’re trying to complete a pass and execute a play against a defense that sort of knows it’s coming and they’re sort of geared to stop it, hopefully. That’s a competitive situation, too.’’
Belichick recalled his first year with the Giants, which was also quarterback Phil Simms’s rookie year, and the respect he gained for Simms, particularly his accuracy, while Simms ran the scout team against the Giants’ defense.
Belichick was quick to clarify that he wasn’t comparing Mallett to Simms, but he did note that Mallett has “made some impressive throws in practice.’’
Mallett was one of the most talked-about prospects in this year’s draft. Many believed he had first-round talent coming out of Arkansas, but there were character concerns that caused him to slide. He has had no such issues with the Patriots.
