FOXBORO - The Patriots turned Friday’s practice into a blue-vs.-white scrimmage, and the switch in format brought out plenty of action in the team’s fifth straight training camp session.
Coaches split the roster the day before and handed out the assignments, with two pairings kept intact: Drake Maye and Jared Wilson were kept together, and so were Mack Hollins and Efton Chism III. The blue team came away with a 22-15 win in what was the hottest and fastest day of camp so far.
New England was missing nine players from the field. Mike Vrabel said beforehand that offensive tackle Will Campbell would sit out after wearing an arm brace in the previous two practices. The others unavailable were fullback Reggie Gilliam, wide receiver Cameron Dorner, offensive guard Caedan Wallace, defensive tackle Christian Barmore, edge rusher Harold Landry (PUP), cornerbacks Charles Woods and Carlton Davis, and safety Brenden Schooler (NFI).
There were also a couple of returns. Wide receiver Romeo Doubs was back after a two-day absence that Vrabel described as a personal matter, and tight end Jack Westover returned as well. Wide receiver Kyle Dixon, meanwhile, left early with a member of the training staff for an undisclosed reason.
Maye had a rough opening stretch, starting his work 1-for-6, and he spent much of the day dealing with pressure. He did settle in enough to find Doubs and running back TreVeyon Henderson for white team touchdowns. By the end, Maye was 10-for-19.
Tommy DeVito kept rolling as QB2. On his birthday, he finished 13-for-16 and threw two touchdowns, both going to DeMario Douglas. DeVito’s early throws were contested more than he probably wanted, with Kindle Vildor batting down two passes and Leonard Taylor III getting a hand on another at the line.
Behren Morton, working as the third quarterback, had a quieter afternoon. He was traded from the blue team to the white team during the session and threw only seven passes, completing four. Brandon Crossley broke up one of his throws, denying a ball intended for Efton Chism III.
Douglas was the clear standout among the receivers. He scored twice for the blue team, first on a slant from the left slot when he beat his defender inside and DeVito fit the ball into a tight window.
Later, Douglas scored again on an out route, then later hooked up with DeVito on a deep completion of about 45 yards down the middle - the longest play of the day. In all, he finished with six catches and looked like the most productive receiver on the field.
The blue team defense got strong early work from two undrafted players. Xavier Holmes of James Madison had a pass breakup on Maye and also notched what would have been a sack on Morton.
Khalil Jacobs of Missouri came close on multiple snaps, including a blitz where he burst through untouched and forced Maye to roll right and throw away. Jacobs also dropped an interception later and laughed about it after practice.
Vrabel had praise for Jacobs before the workout, saying, "He loves football. He's here a lot.
He was here in the offseason, through the mini camps early, staying late," Vrabel said prior to practice. "He stays late.
I see him here all the time. He loves just kind of when you put the ball down to play."
On the offensive line, Marcus Bryant filled in for Campbell at left tackle after taking over those duties on Thursday. First-round rookie Lomu was with the starting unit for the white team before a cleat issue sent him off the field, though he later returned to protect Maye’s blindside.
The biggest play of the morning came on the blue team side, and it started with a near-miss. DeVito delivered a throw on a comeback route to Tejhaun Palmer, but Palmer couldn’t hang on near the sideline. The ball popped loose and landed in the hands of undrafted running back Myles Montgomery, who took off down the sideline and got close to the end zone before being brought down at the 10.
A.J. Brown also spoke about the competition he’s been getting from Christian Gonzalez, saying, "With us going at it each and every day, when you step out there, you know anybody can get it.
And I think that's the mentality. Honeslty, so this is my first time going against the defense on a day-to-day basis.
The mentality has picken up. I believe we need to go up against somebody else."
The Patriots now get a well-earned weekend off. When they return, they’ll start preparing for a joint practice and preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts, with practice set for Monday at 10:15 a.m.
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