- 5 months ago
Alex Barth and Scott Zolak discuss which Patriots have flashed the most through the first eight practices of training camp.
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00:00Welcome into today's training camp practice report, Alex Barth, Scott Zolak.
00:04We are brought to you by Safety Insurance, Day 8 of Patriot Training Camp.
00:08Last one for me and Zoe. We'll have some more of these with the rotating cast next week,
00:11but the way vacations and stuff line up, and kind of a perfect way to wrap it up,
00:16Zoe, Patriots had a walk-through practice today again, so not much from today.
00:19We'll talk mostly about kind of the last two weeks and what we've seen to this point
00:23before the Patriots get into game week. They'll have their in-stadium practice tomorrow,
00:27and then it's game week next week ahead of the Washington Commanders coming to town.
00:31But the big news today, Mack Hollins off PUP, back on the field, not just back on the field.
00:36He was, and it was a walk-through, but he was right in that rotation, first snap with Drake May.
00:41A little less reps for Kendrick Bourne, but I think he kind of took a little from everybody.
00:45How does Mack Hollins, in your mind, impact the picture of the wide receiver room overall?
00:50Well, if you listen to Ramondre Stevenson, and he was on with Kay Adams,
00:53I mean, Christ, she got three fucking interviews right out of the gate with the ownership group,
00:59with Mr. Kraft, then she had Ramondre, and then she had Drake May.
01:01She does a great job.
01:02I think, did she have Henry, too? Hunter Henry?
01:04She may have, I don't know.
01:05I think I thought I said, I don't know.
01:06Yeah, no, she's a superstar.
01:07She was great in the Super Bowl. She cleaned my glasses with her pants.
01:11Oh, that was nice of her.
01:12You didn't have your rag?
01:14I did have a rag. I had one of the white, I actually had to bring this,
01:19because somebody said that I was bleeding in it yesterday. No, that was ketchup.
01:21Okay. That was ketchup. Glad we got that.
01:23Ketchup all in my hands. But, yeah, I mean, we know who Steph Diggs is, right?
01:27Yes.
01:27We know who Mack Hollins is. Like, you say, okay, they're going to go sign this guy, Mack Hollins.
01:32I'm like, oh, I know that guy. He was in Buffalo. He was with Josh at one point.
01:35Good career year with Josh.
01:37Just a good X receiver. When I say X receiver, he's got size. He's physical.
01:42Yeah.
01:42He's going to run slants, curls, Diggs. And that's going to be about it. Maybe a couple comebacks.
01:48I wonder if he could be a go guy, too. You know, get down the field with his height.
01:52Yeah.
01:52Go up and get the ball at his highest point.
01:54He's aggressive. He sacrifices his body. I think the biggest thing is he's going to be very good in the blocking game.
02:01Remember Nikhil Harry and how you motioned him down in?
02:04And Nikhil was really, really good at blocking, you know, in the run game.
02:07Couldn't catch a damn ball to save his life.
02:09But he was good in the run game. And I think they used him to the best of his ability to do that.
02:13And it just makes me, you know, go down that wide receiver list.
02:16Like, adding a guy like that makes you look at Baker and Polk and say, boy, it just makes it tougher on those guys.
02:23Because you didn't really have Mack Hollins to talk about here.
02:26But, like, that guy's making the team. He made money.
02:28You mentioned him being the X. Were you surprised that they moved him around as much as they did?
02:32Because he was mostly at the X table. We saw him in the slot a little bit.
02:34We saw him at Z a little bit. Like, I think they might see him as more than just an X.
02:39He'll play there. Yeah. But I think he may have other roles, too.
02:42Well, I think in the run game, too, Josh is going to want him in that short motion with a return motion that help on the edge.
02:46Helps on that edge. Maybe block the safety that's down in the box.
02:51I just think now that they're trying to find personnel groupings, like, what works best for them.
02:56You know, Kayshawn Booty has played his way into this thing where he's getting more reps.
02:59And what's going to be the best grouping if you go three wide?
03:03It's obviously going to be Diggs, Hollins, and Pop.
03:06And then I think that's where, you know, you start incorporating a guy like Booty.
03:10I keep going to Booty. Like, he's making plays throughout camp.
03:12No, he's been – the big thing for me with Kayshawn Booty, the last couple years when he was here,
03:17he would have these unbelievable days where he'd catch five or six passes.
03:20He'd make a highlight catch. It was great.
03:22But then he'd have three or four days where he wouldn't catch anything.
03:23He wouldn't get open for three or four days.
03:25And it's just – the flashes are there, but you've got to be consistent in this league.
03:29And maybe the highs haven't been as high in this camp for him,
03:33but that's okay because he's been consistent.
03:35And at a certain point, you just need that.
03:37And the highs will come because he has the talent,
03:40but the baseline needs to be a certain level to get on the field.
03:43And he was just way too hot and cold his first two years.
03:47And if he's gotten to that baseline, that would be very encouraging.
03:50Do you think he was coached well those first two years?
03:52I mean, he didn't really have wide receivers coaches.
03:54Yeah, that's the thing.
03:55So, like, he's out there scrambling,
03:57trying to just make plays with the short reps that he's given.
04:01I like guys like that because, you know,
04:03I played with a guy by the name of Troy Brown.
04:05And Troy and I were always on the scout team.
04:07And he would get cut.
04:08He'd bring him back, get cut, bring him back.
04:09Hassan Graham played for him instead of him in the Super Bowl.
04:13Next thing you know, Desmond Howard's down running a kickback.
04:15And, you know, we end up losing that Super Bowl.
04:17That's one of the reasons we lost it.
04:18But Troy Brown –
04:19Like a 12th-round pick, right?
04:21Yeah.
04:21Back in the day?
04:22I can't remember what round.
04:23It's a round that doesn't exist anymore.
04:24I know that.
04:25Right.
04:25Yeah.
04:26Yeah, we had, like, three real days of the draft back to the day.
04:28Man.
04:29Speaking of the coaching thing,
04:30I don't know if you got a chance to hear any of Jalen Polk's press conference yesterday.
04:33But he was asked kind of about his mindset.
04:36He said he has a, you know, new approach going into this year, new mindset.
04:39And then he was asked what that was.
04:41And he said, no, it's actually the same mindset.
04:43I haven't changed a lot.
04:44He was asked what changed about his game.
04:46Said he hasn't changed a lot.
04:47He was asked why.
04:48He said, you know, he doesn't listen to the narratives.
04:49He's just going to go out there and be him.
04:51And he hasn't changed a lot in his approach.
04:53I thought that was pretty interesting.
04:55From a guy that had 12 catches last year, you know, mentioning the narratives, 12 catches in 15 games isn't a narrative.
05:01It's a lack of production.
05:02I think he's.
05:02But it seemed like, sorry, the point was, it seemed like he was really putting it on the situation fucked him up last year.
05:08And it wasn't him.
05:08It was the coaching and the situation that led to his lack of production.
05:12I just remember, you know, he in the back end of the back end line of the end zone where to this day, I think he still thinks that was a touchdown.
05:19The toe heel play.
05:20Yeah.
05:20The toe heel play.
05:20You could say the rule sucks, but they called the rule sucks.
05:22Even the head coach at the time, Geron Mayo said the rules, the rule was he's out.
05:26He was out.
05:26And even that next week, he kept saying, you know, I was in.
05:29I was in.
05:29You saw the play.
05:30Yeah, we saw the play.
05:30I called it out as I was live calling the game.
05:33If he truly believes that, like I'm moving on.
05:37Like I could really forget things.
05:38I just think he's a little embarrassed.
05:40I think he's been hearing the noise out there and you just become a little defiant in it.
05:45He's in a tough spot.
05:46He's in a really tough spot.
05:47He is.
05:47All right.
05:48We reset the depth chart at wide receiver here after two weeks.
05:50I kind of want to do the offensive line too, because I feel like there's, there's a clear group of these guys are making a push and these guys aren't.
05:57So you have, if everybody's healthy, you're starting five is going to be left to right.
06:02Campbell, Jared Wilson, Garrett Bradbury, Mike Onwenu, Morgan Moses.
06:06So that's five.
06:07Caden Wallace has looked like one of their top backups.
06:10Cole Strange has been in the mix as a starter.
06:12You figure he's still in there.
06:13Ben Brown is now clearly the backup center.
06:16And then Demontra Jacobs has been their backup right tackle.
06:19The only other guy that's gotten significant sorts of reps is Marcus Bryant, the seventh round pick.
06:23And where he comes in is, I named nine linemen I think are going to make the team.
06:27And that's usually about how many you keep.
06:28There's no backup left tackle in there.
06:30So Marcus Bryant can be your left tackle.
06:32And then the question is, are you cutting Strange?
06:35Because you think he's only a backup left guard and that's it.
06:37There's no versatility.
06:38They're going to start looking at the money.
06:39You're going to save money.
06:39But why do they need to save money?
06:41You've got to keep good players.
06:42They need good offensive linemen.
06:44I mean, we're what?
06:45Seven, eight days into this thing now.
06:47And you've got linemen going down left and right.
06:49Like we haven't even seen Vitarian Lowe.
06:51But we know what Vitarian Lowe is.
06:52I think they know what Vitarian Lowe is.
06:54I think it's the utmost importance to get Campbell up and running at left tackle.
06:59Stick him there.
07:00Hey, he had a tough week.
07:02But he's a rookie.
07:03And I think his head's on the swivel.
07:04He's under a lot of pressure.
07:05I just want to see him against real competition and see what he does.
07:08Yeah, the joint practices are going to be big for him.
07:11It'll be fucking fun.
07:12Well, it's going to be interesting.
07:13Because if you look at it, Washington doesn't have much on the edge when they come in here.
07:16They do have Dietrich Weiss.
07:18Dietrich Weiss, his length is the first thing that stands out.
07:21Right.
07:22He's a massive human with long arms.
07:23We're talking about stretch.
07:24Right.
07:25So we're going to see.
07:25He's probably going to line up opposite Will Campbell right away.
07:29He's a guy you think he's going to come in here with the chip on his shoulder.
07:32Yep.
07:32Right?
07:33Having not been re-signed.
07:34Oh, yeah.
07:34You know, it's kind of weird to say Dietrich Weiss is the big test when you look at he's
07:37going to face, you know, Max Crosby week one.
07:40But I think it's going to be a pretty good evaluation opportunity for Campbell who yesterday
07:45was that one period, really, that was rough.
07:47Outside of that, I think he was okay.
07:48But two sacks and four plays is always going to be the headline.
07:52Yeah.
07:52And I just think, too, you need five guys.
07:55You need continuity up front.
07:56So Josh and Marone are going to look at this and say, we've got to pick the five guys that
08:01give us the best chance.
08:02Yeah.
08:03And I think that's where I'm going to see some of that rotation in the middle.
08:06And you can tell they're very intrigued by the kid from Georgia.
08:09Oh, yeah.
08:10There's lots to be intrigued by.
08:11It's like the next David Andrews.
08:11You know, this could be a gem for them.
08:13Did you get to ask Andrews about him today when he was up here?
08:15We did.
08:15We did.
08:15Yeah.
08:15What did he give you?
08:16He's excited about it.
08:17He's like, that's great, man.
08:18But like, see, that would be one more like, I was like, man, if we just had Andrews here
08:22where he could sort of teach him the game and be around it.
08:24Yeah.
08:25It's just, it's tough to wait at him for David.
08:27I felt bad for David.
08:28No, it is.
08:28I think he's past it.
08:29He's in a good place right now.
08:31He's dropped some weight.
08:32He looks great.
08:33Yeah.
08:33He did like the linemen.
08:34They all do that, right?
08:35Yeah.
08:35They come out after a time right now.
08:36Yeah.
08:37You know, 50.
08:38Was it Jeff Saturday lost like 100 pounds a year or something like that?
08:40Oh, my God.
08:41Yeah.
08:41Yeah.
08:41It's crazy.
08:42He thinned out.
08:43Anything from the defense through the first couple weeks that stood out to you?
08:46Your biggest takeaway from the defense?
08:47Well, I'm concerned about the corners right now.
08:49I mean, your biggest strength on defense was your two cover corners.
08:52And for whatever reason, you haven't seen Davis yet.
08:56And we know what it is with Gonzalez.
08:58I'm not worried about him.
08:59Yeah.
09:00But it's just, you want to get out there.
09:02You want to get in the flow of things.
09:03You want to get your calls down, you know?
09:06Depth at linebacker.
09:07What happens if, you know, Spillane goes down?
09:10You know, what are we doing?
09:10We kicking the bye back inside again?
09:12Or is it going to be Ellis running around, undersized a Christian Ellis?
09:16I like Christian Ellis.
09:17Yeah.
09:17But I just, I worry about the depth of the linebackers.
09:22I think up front, you're going to be fine.
09:24I think as we wrap it up here, it seems like the big picture take from the first two weeks is,
09:29and I don't want to put your words in your mouth, but kind of what we've been dancing around,
09:32the starting groups on both sides of the ball feel improved.
09:35Maybe they're not amazing, but they're better, noticeably better than they were last year.
09:38The depth is still scary.
09:40As soon as guys start to come out of that lineup, it's a house of cards,
09:43and it can get real ugly real quick when you start losing players.
09:46I'm not saying they're a playoff team or a Super Bowl team.
09:48And I heard you with Felger and Mazz yesterday, and I agree with you on this, that it just feels better.
09:53Yeah.
09:54I can't say why.
09:56It's just, it's the vibe.
09:58It's, you feel like there's adults in a room that are teaching.
10:01They're on the move.
10:01You can tell it's instructional.
10:03It's an instructional camp.
10:04And, you know, the quarterback, I think, has gotten better, and that's a big one.
10:07That's a big one.
10:08That's the other big story.
10:09Like, he looks better.
10:10No interceptions through the first two weeks.
10:12Looks and can control the offense.
10:13And part of that take to yesterday was just, some of it's about how far away they were last year.
10:17They were far.
10:18They were just not a good team last year.
10:20So, there was room to get a lot better and still not be great.
10:22Remember Manti-Fuckin-Teo?
10:24Remember him?
10:24Yeah.
10:25Far from it.
10:25Far from it.
10:26That, that's going to be a wrap on this training camp practice report brought to you by Safety Insurance.
10:30Good job, Zoe.
10:31It's been a pleasure.
10:32I'll see you next week.
10:33I'll see you next week.
10:34We'll be back.
10:35Do we have one more?
10:35Do me and Zoe have one more, Jim?
10:36Wednesday.
10:37Next Wednesday?
10:37Wednesday.
10:38Zoe has, me and Zoe are here.
10:39Oh, I'm not doing Wednesday.
10:40Okay.
10:41Because I'm on with Felger and Maz.
10:42Hey, it's been a ball then.
10:43It's been a ball.
10:44But we'll have more of these reports for you.
10:46I'll have one with Matt Dolph tomorrow.
10:47We'll kind of mix and match next week.
10:49Sports Hub YouTube page, Patriots Hub Podcast.
10:51We'll get him to swear.
10:52I'll get him to swear.
10:53All right, buddy.
10:53Thanks, Bill.
10:54We'll be back next week.
10:55Patriots Hub Podcast.
10:57Sports Hub YouTube page, wherever you get yours.
10:59Matt and I have more coverage on 98.5thesportshub.com.
11:01Until the next one, for Scott Zolok, I'm Alex Barr.
11:03Thanks for tuning in, and we'll talk to you next time.