PatsPropaganda

An Independent Patriots Blog

Mike Dussault

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Pettine told a story of how, at Wes Welker’s wedding, Tom Brady bragged a little bit to Jets outside linebackers coach Mike Smith, who was Welker’s college roommate, that the Patriots may or may not have had possession of a couple Jets defensive playbooks. “It didn’t shock me because Rex would give them out like candy anyway,” Pettine says. “He gave one out to [Alabama coach Nick] Saban and I was like, ‘Don’t you know Saban and Bill [Belichick] are pretty good friends? I have a feeling it’s going to end up in New England.’”

Mike Pettine, Cleveland Browns coach, ready to unleash complex defense | The MMQB with Peter King

Good read from old friend Greg Bedard, with a few Pats mentions.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/pettine-told-a-story-of-how-at-wes-welkers/

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On the field, one of the biggest surprises involved Jamie Collins. The linebacker, at one point, switched his blue defensive t-shirt for a gray offensive one and lined up with the offense. Tom Brady event through one pass his way.
“I asked if he felt a little smarter when he got in the offensive huddle,” Brady said. “And Vince [Wilfork] heard me and said, ‘Well, he’s definitely not as tough.’”

Darrelle Revis missing from Patriots minicamp on Wednesday | Sports – Patriots | providencejournal.com | The Providence Journa

Interesting. Normally we don’t get much insight into unique personnel packages like this but Brady commented on it so it became fair game. Collins has great size and athleticism, though depth at tight end is razor-thin right now and this could just be a move to build emergency depth which we hopefully won’t need.

Still, we saw what Vrabel did as a goalline tight end. If Gronk is limited in the season we could see Collins grab a touchdown pass.

I still say Nate Solder will get at least one touchdown grab before he’s done.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/jamie-collins-patriots-blog-2/

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The superstar of the summer, at least from this view, has been Kenbrell Tompkins. The wide receiver continued a strong run of practices Wednesday by beating Brandon Browner twice on the left sideline, then again in the end zone on a beautiful fade from Tom Brady. He then caught a back-shoulder pass down the right sideline. If anyone has benefitted from Aaron Dobson and Brandon LaFell being limited this summer, it’s certainly Thompkins.

New England Patriots minicamp observations: Kenbrell Thompkins shines | masslive.com

Thompkins was the talk of camp last year and he certainly made some good plays early last season, peaking with the game-winning touchdown catch against the Saints. But he faded down the stretch whether it was due to injuries or defenses starting to catch on to him. It was crazy to see an undrafted rookie come out and see significant snaps as the Pats X-receiver and now with a full year under his belt, it seems that Thompkins is thinking less and playing faster.

Was impressed by his ability to get off the line of scrimmage last year, but he left his feet a lot when making catches and also had a lot of drops. As he gets more comfortable I think we’ll see less of those kind of bad plays.

Dobson better be ready to bring it once his foot is healed.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/kenbrell-thompkins-patriots/

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Quarterback Tom Brady delivered two plays that stood out – a beautiful fade pass to receiver Kenbrell Thompkins on the left side of the end zone (cornerback Brandon Browner in coverage) in red-zone drills, and a sweet throw to tight end Michael Hoomanawanui up the right seam (linebacker Jerod Mayo in coverage). Brady, who turns 37 in August, looks like he’s on top of his game as those weren’t the only plays that made us take note.

What stood out from New England Patriots minicamp – ESPN Boston

https://www.patspropaganda.com/quarterback-tom-brady-delivered-two-plays-that/

Tweets of note from Wednesday’s Patriots Minicamp Practice

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Headlines today are that Darrelle Revis didn’t finish the session and Josh Boyce pulled up with what’s probably a hamstring tweak and didn’t finish either. Otherwise, more of the same with the rookies showing some promise, especially Garoppolo, who is benefiting from Ryan Mallett’s absence. In the long term this Mallett injury could really be beneficial to the Pats as Garoppolo is immediately getting a ton of work.

Here are the tweets of note…

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[Wilfork] has made more progress than I think anybody really expected to at this point. He was out there for the entire practice yesterday, but his reps were extremely limited over the last few sets of 11-on-11 drills. This is progress from the previous two times we’ve seen him. He used to be out there for an hour of practice then go rehab inside the bubble (Dana Farber Fieldhouse). I think the fact they’re keeping him out there means the rehab schedule has changed and they’re more confident in the progress he’s making.

Howe On Toucher & Rich: Wilfork Ahead Of Schedule In Rehab From Achilles Injury « CBS Boston

https://www.patspropaganda.com/wilfork-has-made-more-progress-than-i-think/

Cleaning out the Patriots minicamp notebook – ESPN Boston

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Cleaning out the Patriots minicamp notebook – ESPN Boston

Good look at some of the depth along the offensive line. Braxton Cave and Josh Kline are two guys we haven’t talked much about this offseason, despite believing offensive line was really in need of the boost it got in the draft. It boils down to having really good competition for camp and the injury insurance that kind of depth provides. I think that the starting fivesome when the season starts could be surprising.