Mack Hollins has never looked interested in blending in, and at Patriots training camp he’s making sure nobody misses that.
For nearly an hour, the New England wide receiver worked the edge of the practice fields signing autographs and posing for photos with fans. When he finished his media session and noticed Efton Chism III nearby, Hollins took off sprinting across the field with his hands raised high, ready to link back up with the rookie he had been attached to during the autograph stretch. It was a pretty clean snapshot of the Hollins experience: loud, playful, and completely on his own terms.
That same energy is showing up everywhere around camp, from the way he dresses to the way he talks about his routine. Hollins said the area has started to accept the barefoot-in-public version of him.
"Now they're kinda letting me slide being barefoot in restaurants and stuff because they know who I am," he told reporters after practice. "At first, they're just like some homeless guy (is) coming in here, but now it's like, that's the mechanic homeless guy, so it's alright."
The details are part of the package with Hollins. He’s got the mechanic persona on social media, the cut-up undershirt under his practice jersey, and the no-shoes approach because, as he explained, he wants to feel comfortable when he’s eating by himself. At 32 and entering his 10th NFL season, and second with the Patriots, he’s not trying to sand any of it down.
"This is my favorite time of the year because you're competing and everybody's competing at the highest level to earn a job," Hollins said. "I love it.
I love the schedule. I love wall-to-wall ball.
I love staying in a hotel. I don't know, I guess that's just me."
On the field, the early camp production hasn’t been loud, though he did come up with a strong catch on an in-breaking route during team drills. But Hollins has never been the type to measure his value only by targets. He called himself "I'm a ball player," and that’s the role he seems content to fill - helping however he can, especially with younger teammates.
Chism has been one of them. Hollins said the relationship started last year and has carried into 2026, with the veteran pushing the younger receiver while also learning from him.
"I told him, 'Take everything I do and then change it to what's best for you.' And that's what I've seen him do," Hollins said.
"If I'm doing something and he's not doing it, he's going to hear it ... He's getting a little big.
He can start saying stuff to me when I'm not doing it, so he keeps me honest too.
"But it's been, it's been really cool to watch him grow, not only as a player on the field, but off, and understanding how to be a pro and things it takes to be great and sustain that for more than a season and not just be like 'Oh it's a guy who's shining in a training camp for one year because he's small and white. Efton's a baller, that's why he's shining."
The undershirt story might be the most Hollins thing of all. He said the shredded look is practical, designed to help keep his fingers dry and cut down on sweating during long summer workouts. But one of the strips is missing because a fan asked for it, and Hollins handed it over.
"It's practical, but also looks great," Hollins said, adding that the league wouldn't allow him to wear it in a game because the league doesn't "let you do anything fun."
If there’s one thing he clearly enjoys, it’s the fan interaction. Hollins said some people wait two or three hours to see the players, with others lined up at 6:30 or 7:30 in the morning before he even arrives. Not everyone knows exactly who he is, and that doesn’t bother him.
"They stayed out there for two hours, some three hours. Some at 6:30 or 7:30 when I drive in in the morning, they're already lined up out there," Hollins said when asked about why he stuck around for so long to sign.
"Some of them don't even know who I am. They be calling me Mack Collins and like 'Hey crazy hair guy.
Hey what's his name?' And that's fine.
I don't care.
"Maybe that'll put a smile on their face and will etch some memory in their mind six years from now, 10 years from now, 20 years. I was at Patriots practice, this dude with crazy hair and no shoes signed my autograph, like an autograph for me. So I just do it."
At 6-foot-4 and 221 pounds, Hollins also brings something more conventional to the roster: size and blocking ability. He remains the best blocking wide receiver on the team, and he figures to have a role in the offense even if he isn’t Drake Maye’s top target. The Patriots can use him as a bigger body who helps move the chains when they need it.
And as for the end of the road? Hollins doesn’t sound like he’s in a hurry.
"Yeah, I’m halfway there. I got 10 more (years) in me," Hollins said.
"So if they can stop me, then maybe I’ll stop early. But they haven’t stopped me."
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