FOXBOROUGH — Bill Belichick released the Patriots offense from the red zone on Sunday afternoon, and with more field to work with, Mac Jones and company delivered their best session of the summer.
In their final practice before going fully-padded for the first time, both Jones and Bailey Zappe were able to move the ball with their respective units, and a couple pass catchers who’d been quiet finally got involved, too. It was definitely a step in the right direction.
Here are 10 takeaways for an autumnal-feeling afternoon on the backfields at Gillette Stadium:
1. Offense gets rolling
Practice stats can sometimes be deceiving, but Sunday afternoon’s are pretty indicative of the way things went down. According to MassLive’s charting, Jones was 10 for 14, Zappe went 12 for 16 with an interception, and third-stringer Trace McSorley went 9 for 11, too. All three groupings operated smoothly and really seemed to benefit from getting out of the red zone for a bit, where Bill Belichick held the entirety of the first three sessions of camp.
The throw of the day came from Zappe, as he found Jalen Hurd in the back corner of the end zone with a perfectly placed dart. After practice, Zappe explained that he read the defense in Cover 2, had a hole shot to Hurd on a conversion route, and he delivered a strike on a ball that whizzed 35 yards or so in the air.
2. Matthew Judon sidelined again
After participating actively in Friday’s practice, the Pro Bowl edge rusher was generally a spectator during team periods again. Judon’s snaps in 11-on-11 could be counted on one hand, as it appeared he was only out there for three plays, and never consecutively. Last week, Judon said he was handling conditioning differently this summer, though his contract has also been a topic of discussion.
“Right now, me and the training staff and the coaches we’re just working to where, when I do practice, I’m at a good pace,” Judon said. “I can move fast the whole practice. It’s nothing like that. It’s more working on my conditioning, working on my running.”
When pads come on Monday, it’ll be fascinating to see what Judon’s workload is.
3. Jack Jones jumps up
For the first time since his arrest at Logan Airport, Jack Jones got some run against Mac Jones’ offense.
The talented cornerback’s impact was felt immediately. With Jones on the field, the offense’s next two snaps were coverage sacks. It was really the only bad series of the day for any Patriots offense. Jones also broke up a screen pass intended for Kendrick Bourne earlier in the session. When he’s out there, he’s always making plays.
4. Film work pays off for Jalen Mills
The best defensive play of the day came from Jalen Mills, as the safety stepped in front of tight end Scotty Washington to intercept Zappe in 11-on-11s. After practice, Mills explained that the pick was the product of correcting a previous mistake.
“It was the same play that I got scored on by (Matt) Sokol (last week),” Mills explained. “Just going through the film, getting my body position right. I was working the last couple days with (cornerback coach Mike Pellegrino), and got the same route, slipped underneath it, and came up with the interception.
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5. Pop Douglas keeps popping
Speedy wide receiver Demario Douglas continues to show up.
The sixth-round pick caught four more passes and made a nifty snag on a punt return, too. After one of the receptions, Douglas got a fist bump from Bill Belichick when he returned to the huddle. If the Patriots carry five wide receivers, Douglas has started his camp with a strong push for the final spot.
6. Two new absences
Fellow rookie receiver Kayshon Boutte was missing from Sunday’s session, as was center Jake Andrews. They joined Mike Onwenu (PUP), Cody Davis (PUP) and Calvin Anderson (NFI) on the absent list. Davis was present at the practice and watching drills in a gray hoodie. The core special teamer suffered a serious knee injury last season and had a black compression sleeve on his left leg.
7. Interesting pass catcher with QBs
During a special teams period, Mac Jones and the quarterbacks went to a side field to throw with the usual suspects — Hunter Henry, Mike Gesicki, Kendrick Bourne, Tyquan Thornton, Devante Parker and JuJu Smith-Schuster — but there was one additional tight end with them, too: Anthony Firkser. If Belichick opts to carry three tight ends, that’ll be one of the most competitive roster battles of the summer, so it was interesting to see Firkser taking reps alongside the core pass catchers.
8. Rough afternoon for Marcus Jones
After a strong practice opposite Jonathan Jones and Christian Gonzalez last Thursday, Marcus Jones struggled quite a bit on Sunday. Jones was in coverage on the Hurd touchdown from Zappe, and Tre Nixon scored on him to make it back-to-back plays. Later, Tyquan Thornton beat Jones for a touchdown, too.
9. Mike Gesicki builds some momentum
After being totally shut out in his first three practices as a Patriot, Gesicki hauled in a pair of passes from Mac Jones and looked to be finding his rhythm. The former Dolphins tight end will likely be a pivotal piece of the Patriots offense this season, so it was encouraging to see him get on the scoreboard.
10. Still a zero for Kendrick Bourne
With Gesicki and Thornton making an impact on Sunday, Bourne is the final Patriots pass catcher without a reception in the first four days camp. The 27-year-old wide receiver — who says he feels the best he’s ever felt — isn’t sweating the slow statistical start.
“Of course you want the ball, but it’s about the team,” Bourne said. “We don’t count stats. It’s all about the game.”
