Here are 6 takeaways from Day 1 of Patriots OTAs
The New England Patriots stepped on the field for Day 1 of organized team activities on Monday. It wasn’t a padded practice, but it was the first look at 11-on-11s and 7-on-7s action involving both the offense and defense.
More important, it was the first look at the rookie additions to the roster, including quarterback Drake Maye. The No. 3 overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft was right in the thick of things working alongside Jacoby Brissett, Bailey Zappe and fellow rookie Joe Milton III.
This isn’t training camp, but the coaches are clearly watching to see when or if Maye is ready to take on a bigger role in the offense. So, how did he look at the first OTAs practice? Did the offense look improved from last year in a limited setting? How did the defense perform?
Here are six takeaways from Day 1 of the Patriots’ OTAs practice:
Attendance
Most of the players showed up for Monday’s practice, which is pretty remarkable for Day 1 of OTAs. Granted, there were a few absences, including Matthew Judon, Davon Godchaux, Zuri Henry, Jahlani Tavai, Anfernee Jennings, Josh Uche, Kendrick Bourne and Cole Strange.
Strange could be out for an extended period of time, while Bourne is expected to miss all spring. With that said, it’s encouraging to see so many players show up for work to get on the same page with the new coaching staff, even though it isn’t a big deal to see some players skip.
Preview of the starting offensive line?
Cole Strange being out for Monday’s practice wasn’t surprising. However, it did come as a bit of a shock when coach Jerod Mayo said the offensive guard could be “month-to-month” as far as his health is concerned.
Strange injured his knee at last year’s training camp, and that injury lingered throughout the regular season. Injuries have plagued the former University of Tennessee at Chattanooga standout’s NFL run so far. While he was out, Nick Leverett and Sidy Sow took the top reps at guard, while David Andrews worked in as center. The top-two tackles were Mike Onwenu and Chuks Okorafor.
Could that be a preview of the Patriots’ top offensive line unit this season?
Rookie guard Layden Robinson could also get in the mix at training camp, and Caedan Wallace, who was drafted in the third round, was selected with the intention of moving him from right tackle to the left side. There are still questions along the offensive front, but things should be significantly more competitive than it was last season.
Drake Maye gets limited reps
The biggest headline at every practice, whether it’s OTAs or training camp, will be about rookie quarterback Drake Maye’s development. New England would have never drafted him with the No. 3 overall pick if they didn’t expect him to start at some point, but they also aren’t in any hurry to hand him the reins of the offense, either.
That was evident with veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett leading the majority of the offensive reps with Bailey Zappe as the top backup. Maye and rookie sixth-round pick Joe Milton III came in behind Zappe.
The Patriots are a rebuilding team with a veteran quarterback in place to help ease Maye into his NFL transition.
Maye is tremendously talented, more so than Mac Jones was coming out of college. But there are still lessons to be taken from Jones’ catastrophic run in New England. The Patriots are in no way, shape or form eager to create a sequel.
Separation anxiety at receiver
It’s way too early in the process to hit the panic button, but Patriots receivers reportedly struggled to get open. Granted, this was the first practice period featuring the offense and defense.
So it could simply be a matter of the Patriots’ receivers needing more reps to get acclimated to the new offense. It doesn’t help matters that they’re facing one of the best defensive units in the NFL returning from last season.
Still, this was a non-padded practice, which should have favored the receivers.
The Patriots failed to land a high-end No. 1 wide receiver in free agency. Their biggest addition this offseason was veteran K.J. Osborn, along with rookie draft picks Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker. Will that be enough to cure their wide receiver woes from last season?
One would think so on paper, but the unit will still need to find better ways to produce on the field.
Defense didn't miss a beat
One of the advantages for the Patriots promoting Jerod Mayo to head coach and DeMarcus Covington to defensive coordinator is the defense remaining mostly intact. From a philosophy and personnel standpoint, this is nearly a carbon copy of the unit Bill Belichick fielded last season.
That’s obviously good news for the Patriots considering they had one of the best defenses in the league. There aren’t a bunch of new concepts and personnel adjustments like there are on the offensive side of the ball. The unit should be able to pick right back up where it left off for the most part.
They’ll also have key players back, including Christian Gonzalez, Marcus Jones and Judon. While Judon missed Monday’s practice, both Gonzalez and Jones were back on the field.
Who were the last players off the field?
One of the lasting images from Monday’s practice came at the end with Maye, Polk and Baker being the last three players to leave the field. The rookies stayed a little longer for some extra work.
That’s the kind of thing that bodes well for a rebuilding team like the Patriots. Their future will be hitched to the success of all three players. Sure, quarterback is the most important position on the field, and Maye’s development will ultimately make or break the team. But he also needs the receivers around him to get the Patriots back to being competitive.
Polk and Baker are expected to be a big part of the offense for years to come. They’re going to need all of the work they can get with Maye to make the smoothest transition possible at the next level.
The Patriots’ offense needs better quarterback play, but it also needs receivers that can get open and make plays.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Here are 6 takeaways from Day 1 of Patriots OTAs
