Romeo Doubs arrived in New England with the kind of expectations that come with being a prized free agent signing. So far, though, the early returns have been more work-in-progress than instant impact.
The Patriots still haven’t been allowed to practice in pads this offseason, and that matters. There’s only so much a team can really show in shorts and helmets. Even with that caveat, Doubs hasn’t exactly jumped off the page through OTAs, mandatory minicamp and the first two practices of training camp.
Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal has already flagged some of the issues, and the same concerns appear to be following Doubs into camp. He was among Bedard’s “3 down” from the weekend, and the bigger issue is that he doesn’t seem fully comfortable yet in Josh McDaniels’ offense or with quarterback Drake Maye.
The competition around him isn’t helping. DeMario Douglas has been getting the bulk of the slot work, while Kayshon Boutte has apparently moved well ahead of Doubs on the boundary after a strong start to camp.
Bedard didn’t soften his assessment of Doubs’ fit in the offense.
“I have a lot, starting with the ability to assimilate into this offense. He's coming from a West Coast scheme, where you pretty much run what's on the paper.
Snap after snap, you see Doubs only looking at the ball for the snap, never the coverage to see if he might need to adjust his route. In the slot, in this offense, it's all about adjustments and reading the defense. ...
He's more of a robotic route runner than loose-hipped with some shake. In this scheme, you want your slot to be a jazz player, able to riff at a moment's notice.
Doubs, at least in Green Bay, played in a symphony off sheet music. ... He makes some spectacular catches, but also can have the drops because of his inconsistent hand placement.”
That’s a pretty direct warning sign, even if it’s still very early.
The Patriots are moving into August soon, and that means the patience meter starts shrinking. Doubs would look a lot better right now if he were stacking the kind of eye-catching plays Boutte has already put on tape in these first two camp practices.
Part of the expectation here was that Doubs would pick things up fast, much like Stefon Diggs did last summer. Diggs ended up with a major role in the slot, logging 305 total snaps there, per Pro Football Focus. Doubs is supposed to help fill a big chunk of that void this season, which is why the current adjustment period stands out.
At the same time, this is still July, and Mike Vrabel said Friday that the Patriots were intentionally scaling back the offense during these first practices because they’re not in pads yet. The weekend work included zone runs designed to better simulate real football without the usual physical strain of double teams and gap responsibilities.
Even Maye’s session on Sunday was a mixed bag. According to Bedard, he threw only 12 competitive passes, and his accuracy was all over the place. Safety Craig Woodson picked off one throw intended for Brown, and Patriots fans in attendance didn’t see much of the expected Maye-to-Brown connection either.
So there’s still room for this to change. Doubs may simply be the kind of player who looks better once the football gets more real and the practices get more physical. The Patriots are still in the NFL’s acclimation period, and fully padded work is coming over the next few days.
He deserves some grace. But with the first preseason game set for Aug. 13, his progress is absolutely worth keeping an eye on.
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