RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesFOXBORO — It was another day of sunshiine for the New England Patriots on Tuesday, Aug. 4, as they practiced in front of fans for the first time this week after moving Monday’s practice indoors due to inclement weather.
Here are three takeaways from Tuesday's session:
Linebacker Gabe Jacas is playing more
Jacas, the second-round pick who has had limited participation in practice since being cleared to practice on Aug. 1, once again saw his practice time increase as he continues to work towards full participation after missing the start of training camp due to contract negotiations.
“He’ll have a few more reps than he did yesterday," head coach Mike Vrabel said before practice, "and, [in] these situations, he has to just understand, and it’s good to see him get acclimated to the special teams stuff. So, I think it’s going well. I think we’re off to a good start, and hopefully he can continue to keep adding things and figure out where he can help us defensively and, really, special teams.”
Jacas participated in team drills for the second day in a row, lining up against a fellow rookie, offensive tackle Caleb Lomu. His participation in the drills showed where he was limited, as he only appeared for one session before watching from the sideline the rest of the time.
Despite the long wait for his eventual arrival to the practice fields, Jacas said he felt a sense of eagerness to play football again and to join his teammates. Jacas also emphasized that all the missed practices and contract disputes are in the past and is willing to do whatever Vrabel and the rest of his coaching staff ask of him.
When he was asked what message he wants to send to Patriots fans now that he’s officially a part of the team, Jacas said he wants fans to know that he’s going to do “whatever it takes” to help the team win.
“I just want to let all the Patriots fans know, you’re going to get the best player out of me each and every game,” Jacas said. “Anything I can [do] to help the team win, I’m going to do it.”
Some players were limited
Other players limited in practice were defensive tackle Christian Barmore and offensive tackle Morgan Moses. Receiver Kyle Williams participated in full Tuesday after being limited on Monday, and receiver A.J. Brown was also a full participant despite dislocating his thumb during Monday’s practice.
“I think he’s going to be OK," Vrabel said. “I told him the linemen do that every other snap, and it’s not a national story when a lineman pops his finger back in place.”
Quarterbacks Drake Maye and Tommy DeVito
At the start of team drills, it looked as though DeVito was the starter for the Patriots rather than Maye. DeVito finished a perfect 2-for-2 passing during his first session, while Maye had just one completion on five attempts. Maye’s worst play of the day occurred as he targeted Brown. The QB completely overthrew Brown despite seeing little pressure from the defense.
Maye made up for it during his second session, going a perfect 3-for-3 with all passes being screens or short passes. DeVito followed that up with another strong showing, three completions on four attempts, including the first touchdown of the day to receiver Kayshon Boutte on a deep ball.
In rookie quarterback Behran Morton’s only session of the day, he had three completions on five attempts. His best pass of the day happened on a downfield throw to receiver Nick DeGennaro with cornerback Kobee Minor in coverage.
Maye continued his bounce-back in the third session of 11-on-11s with another perfect session, including three completions to Brown. Maye’s only other target was Boutte, who brought in Maye’s pass despite being double covered.
DeVito’s third session was another strong showing, completing two of his three pass attempts. A recent but interesting development has been the connection between DeVito and Boutte. The pair had connected for some big plays during practice on Monday, and Tuesday's session was no different. DeVito hit Boutte on a downfield pass with cornerback Channing Canada in coverage. If Boutte is still on the team this September and DeVito must fill in for Maye for some reason, all hope may not be lost with the plays these two are making with each other.
To end practice, the team ran a simulated two-minute drill with Maye and DeVito.
During Maye’s session, he completed four passes on seven attempts (two of which were spikes to stop the clock) and led the team downfield to set up a field-goal attempt for kicker Andy Borregales, which he hit.
Maye’s four completions were all to different receivers in an unintentional showing of the depth of the team’s receiver room.
DeVito finished with three completions on seven attempts (one of which was a spike to stop the clock) during his two-minute drill. DeVito struggled early, having to throw away one of his passes and then overthrowing Williams soon afterward, but he recovered with two completions to Boutte and Mack Hollins to get the team in field-goal range.
DeVito spiked the ball and Borregales nailed the 49-yard attempt on the final play of the day's practice. Borregales was a perfect 7-for-7 on the day as the second-year kicker continues to improve his deep accuracy.
When do the Patriots practice next?
The Patriots return to practice on Wednesday, Aug. 5, with a walk-through, but the practice is closed to the public.
For training camp dates open to the public and other training camp updates, visit Patriots.com for information.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Patriots training camp recap: Gabe Jacas practices and speaks to media
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