5 Patriots takeaways from Day 3 of training camp

FOXBOROUGH – On Day 3 of training camp, Mike Vrabel took it easy on his Patriots players.

Friday marked the third practice in a row and the first where players practiced in shorts, T-shirts, and without helmets. This session was a walkthrough for Vrabel’s Patriots as the head coach wanted to rest his players before ramping things up on Saturday.

With the Patriots getting Sunday off before holding their first padded practice on Monday, they operated at a slower pace on Thursday as the heat index shot above 100 degrees at the Gillette Stadium practice fields.

“Today will be a lighter day so that you guys can understand that this will be more of a walkthrough,” Vrabel said. “But again, it’s important, I think, to see how our team responds and are able to work in that capacity. I’m hopeful that we can get something out of this, come back, really have some speed tomorrow, and really have a good one tomorrow before our day off.”

After focusing on first down on Thursday, the emphasis today was third-down plays. The Patriots didn’t run any competitive team drills but ran long 11-on-11 periods to work on situational football.

The practice started with a handful of first-down plays, which featured a blend of run and shorter passes from Drake Maye. The second and final 11-on-11 session simulated third-down plays and saw the Patriots quarterback throw 18 passes in a row.

Though the plays weren’t run at full speed, there was still plenty to learn.

Here are the top takeaways:

Jared Wilson is already impressing

It was predictable that the Patriots would start training camp with Will Campbell as their starting left tackle. That was always going to be the case after drafting the LSU product with the No. 4 overall pick.

What’s been surprising, however, has been the presence of third-round pick Jared Wilson in the Patriots starting offensive line.

A starting center at Georgia, Wilson was limited this spring and didn’t take any reps in full-team drills. In training camp, the rookie has played all three interior positions – left guard, center, and right guard – with the top unit.

The rookie has impressed his head coach.

“I think that he’s a quick learner. He’s been able to learn two positions inside, as far as center and guard,” Vrabel said. “I would say he was one of those players that maybe wasn’t out there as much on the field in the spring, but really was able to grasp it mentally and allow that to carry over when he had an opportunity to be on the field. So, he was able to show, for a young player, some of those things to be ready when he got his opportunity to be on the field.”

It was eye-opening to see how the Patriots handled Wilson’s reps on Friday.

During the two 11-on-11 periods, the Patriots started the same offensive line they’ve been using this offseason with Campbell (left tackle), Cole Strange (left guard), Garrett Bradbury (center), Michael Onwenu (right guard), and Morgan Moses (right tackle).

After three snaps, however, Wilson was inserted into the lineup at left guard, replacing Strange. He was there for two snaps before moving to center, replacing Bradbury. Wilson played there for two snaps before moving to right guard, and then replaced Onwenu for two more snaps.

After six snaps at all three interior offensive line positions, Wilson went back to the sideline. He rotated through the offensive line twice during the first team period and then twice again during the second and final 11-on-11 walkthrough period.

It’s clear that the Patriots like Wilson, who was considered one of the best centers in the draft, and that he could push a veteran for a starting job.

Maye’s third-down targets

You don’t want to overreact to a walkthrough or most training camp stats. However, it was interesting to see which players Maye targeted during the team’s third-down portion of practice.

The most targeted player on third down was Stefon Diggs, who led the way with four catches. DeMario Douglas was next with three receptions during this third-down simulation.

That doesn’t seem like a coincidence.

In the first two days of camp, in competitive drills, Diggs and Douglas led the Maye-led offense with four receptions. The only other receivers to catch a pass from Maye in competitive drills are Kayshon Boutte (two) and Kyle Williams (two).

On Friday, Maye worked with three primary receivers during the walkthrough – Diggs, Douglas, and Boutte. It was notable that Kendrick Bourne and Williams were on the other field working with Joshua Dobbs’ unit.

Chaisson is on the rise

Friday marked K’Lavon Chaisson’s 26th birthday. He celebrated by working up a sweat following practice.

Entering his sixth NFL season, Chaisson more than understands how nothing in this league is guaranteed. That’s why the edge rusher worked behind the back of the practice fields by himself for 20 minutes after Day 3 of camp ended.

“I do understand that it’s a blessing to be here. I don’t take that for granted,” Chaisson said. “I’ve been on the injury side. I’ve been on the side of not being able to be on a team before. Any chance I get to lace up, put a jersey on, have a logo on my helmet, and a name on the back of my jersey, I just try to give everything I got. I let everything else play out. I don’t try to miss out on any extra reps out here. I want to do as much as I can for the betterment of myself and the team.”

Drafted 20th overall in 2020, Chaisson never developed into the pass rusher the Jacksonville Jaguars hoped for. After starting eight games in 2021, he suffered a knee injury in 2022 and played in nine games. Last season, he was released by the Carolina Panthers after training camp.

After spending time on the Las Vegas Raiders’ practice squad, Chaisson had the best season of his career, finishing with five sacks in the final six games last season.

That led him to New England, where he signed a 1-year, $5 million contract in free agency. After coming into the NFL at age 20, Chaisson feels like he’s just touching the surface of his potential.

“That’s the goal – to keep making progress and keep taking steps forward,” Chaisson said. “I’m going to do everything I can and best I can to keep taking steps forward and make the team better.”

Defense itching for violence

Multiple players have been vocal about wanting to play in pads.

Under NFL rules, the Patriots can’t have a full-contact practice until Monday. Among the players itching to hit someone is defensive end Keion White.

The third-year player had a career-high five sacks last season. However, four of those came in the first two games. After that, the coaching staff wanted him to set the edge as well as read and react.

Vrabel’s defense is much different, and White believes it fits into his playing style.

“Leading with violence is always my type of stuff, so whenever I can do that and not read as much, it’s definitely beneficial for me,” White said.

The Patriots defensive line looks like it has a lot of potential with White, Milton Williams, Christian Barmore, and Harold Landry leading the way.

White said everyone has potential, and it won’t matter until the Patriots prove it on the field. For the defense, that’ll start on Monday.

“From a defensive standpoint, I don’t want the offense to get one yard. Anything more than that is a loss,” White said. “That’s what a dominant defense looks like, and that should be the expectation…I feel like the standard should be negative yards on every play.”

Attendance

After missing Thursday’s practice, Carlton Davis returned for Friday’s walkthrough. The veteran cornerback started the week on the non-football injury list, but was present for the Patriots’ first day of training camp.

Vrabel said the team is easing Davis back into the lineup.

“Yeah, just kind of maintenance and continuing to kind of give him what he needs as part of the plan,” Vrabel said. “Again, that’s my job each and every day, is to figure out what everybody’s going to do and how they’re going to contribute each day to us winning.”

Ja’Lynn Polk missed his third day of practice and still hasn’t had a full practice this offseason. The second-year receiver passed his physical but is reportedly dealing with a lower-body soft tissue issue.

The Patriots are still without Austin Hooper (PUP list), Vederian Lowe (PUP list), and Josh Minkins (NFI list).

The team returns for a practice on Saturday at 10:15 a.m.