Patriots first-round pick Will Campbell signs rookie contract
Second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson and fourth-round choice Craig Woodson are New England's only remaining unsigned rookies.
Christopher Price can be reached at
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
21 minutes ago
- CBS News
Offensive players to watch in Patriots preseason opener vs. Commanders
The New England Patriots play football on Friday night, as the team will kick off its preseason slate against the Washington Commanders at Gillette Stadium. It will give us our first real look at Mike Vrabel's Patriots, and several intriguing rookies on the offensive side of the football. While those around the NFL are extremely high on New England's defense, there are still a lot of questions surrounding the team's offense. Is Drake Maye ready to make that Year 2 jump? How is the unit taking to Josh McDaniel's system? Is it a functioning offense? Can the offensive line protect Maye, and can his receivers get open? We aren't going to get the answers to all of those questions Friday night, but we should have a better idea of where the unit stands when it goes against a talented squad in the Commanders. That is, of course, assuming New England's top offense actually takes the field against something resembling Washington's top defense. Several Commanders veterans will likely sit out the game, but Patriots players need all the reps they can get under a new head coach and in a new offensive system. Even after a strong showing in Wednesday's joint practice -- which a lot of coaches consider more valuable than preseason games -- expect to see a number of top-teamers take the field for New England. "I would say most everybody that's healthy should expect to play in the game," Vrabel said ahead of Wednesday's joint practice. Quarterback Jayden Daniels isn't going to play for Washington, which is a bummer. But here are New England's offensive players we really want to see during Friday's exhibition, including a number of guys looking to make the team. The Patriots are going as far as Drake Maye takes them this season. We'll be looking for two things in particular when he's on the field Friday night. Is he taking what the defense gives him and not forcing passes downfield? And has he cut down on his turnovers? Maye hasn't been taking many deep risks downfield in practice, going through his reads and cashing in with the intermediary game. It led to a sharp drop in turnovers from OTAs and minicamp, as Maye hadn't thrown a practice pick until last Friday's in-season scrimmage. Now he's going to line up against a defense that is not his own, throwing some different looks and coverages (albeit still vanilla preseason looks and coverages) his way. Will he keep cashing in underneath or force some deep balls downfield in a game-but-not-a-game setting? And will he fulfill his promise to remain a passer for a lot longer than he did as a rookie before mobilizing and taking off downfield? Maye's decision-making -- especially his decision-making in the face of pressure -- could make or break the Patriots this season. Depending on how much he plays, we could get an early idea of how he's acclimating to McDaniels' offense and processing everything a defense shows him on Friday night. Dobbs should get a lot of playing time Friday as Maye's top backup. He's been slinging it well in practice, so we could see some big throws out of "The Passtronaut." Wooldridge has been OK, but he's really going to have to show a lot in the preseason to earn a spot on the 53-man roster. We'll see if he even plays. But if he plays, we want to see him catch a pass or two and roast some DBs. And if he doesn't play, we want to see Diggs on the sideline chatting up Maye and New England's young receivers throughout the game. We don't want to overhype the rookie running back. But he looks like a big play waiting to happen, and there's a chance he'll so something special or explosive whenever he gets the ball in his hands. He's also an excellent blocker in pass protection, which led to the scuffle in the joint practice that left Vrabel bloodied. Watching him break off a big run or race to the end zone on a wheel route would be fun, but we also want to see Henderson deliver some big blocks on Friday. We'll get our first real look at Campbell and his arms in NFL action against a Commanders defense that could roll out the likes of Dorance Armstrong, Von Miller, old friend Deatrich Wise, Javon Kinlaw, and Jacob Martin come the regular season. We'll see if any of them play Friday night, but Campbell should get plenty of run as the Patriots get their rookie left tackle as much on-the-job experience as they can ahead of Week 1. Campbell has had his struggles in practice, which is to be expected from a 21-year-old playing one of the toughest positions in the game, but he had a strong joint practice Wednesday. We'll see if his pass-blocking is as shaky as some are saying, and if his run-blocking is as good as some are saying on Friday night. Wilson has been the most impressive rookie at Patriots camp and has earned the praise of coaches and veterans alike for his work ethic and versatility. He's lined up as both starting center and left guard, and is trending toward starting somewhere on the offensive line come Week 1. Brown has been the top backup to Garrett Bradbury, and got a lot of run with the ones when the veteran got hurt. We'll probably see a lot of him Friday night. With veteran Morgan Moses on a pitch count this summer, we'll see a lot of Jacobs and Bryant at right tackle. Morgan played through a number of injuries with the Jets last season, but it will be imporant for the Patriots to have a good backup ready to go for the 34-year-old. He's been a bit boom or bust in camp, with some explosive big plays and some frustrating dropped passes. But the Patriots need some TNT out of the receiver position and Williams could provide that as a rookie. He remains a longshot to make the 53-man roster, but a few third-down catches or big returns by the undrafted receiver in the preseason will help his cause to make the team or join the New England practice squad. He's also been real solid at getting separation in the red zone in practice, so don't be surprised if Chism finds the end zone on Friday. Both are fighting for a roster spot, and chances are only one will get another season with the Patriots. Odds are both could be set free before the season. Polk had some good practices last week, and Baker had a solid Monday that earned him first-team reps in Tuesday's walkthrough. But both are going to need to really show out the rest of the way to have a chance. The return of Mack Hollins is going to really make it difficult for both to get a second season in New England. Scott is in a battle with Jaheim Bell, Jake Westover, and CJ Dippre to be the team's No. 3 tight end after Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper. Scott, who went undrafted out of Ohio State, has played the best of that bunch this summer. The Patriots are pretty set at running back with Rhamondre Stevenson, Antonio Gibson, and Henderson. But Larison is an undrafted rookie trying to make his way in the NFL, so we'll likely see a lot of him Friday night. The UC Davis product had a touchdown run in the in-stadium scrimmage last week. We'll see if he can do that again in the preseason opener. Tune in to Friday's Patriots-Commanders preseason clash on WBZ-TV -- the flagship station of the New England Patriots. Coverage begins at 6 p.m. with a special presentation of the Tom Brady statue unveiling ceremony, and continues at 7 p.m. with Patriots GameDay. Kickoff is set for just after 7:30 p.m., and we'll wrap it all up with Patriots 5th Quarter after the game!
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Patriots QB Drake Maye responds to Josh Allen comparisons
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye has been humble when it comes to getting compared to Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen. Back in June, Allen said Maye was "super talented" and one of his "favorite young quarterbacks" in the NFL. Maye clearly holds the reigning league MVP in high regard as well. The second-year quarterback was asked about the comparisons during a recent appearance on Bussin' With The Boys. 'He's the MVP. …I've got a lot of work to do to even be in the same stratosphere as Josh. Luckily, he's in the division, so we have some good matchups I'm looking forward to," said Maye. "But really, comparisons, I'm just trying to be myself and at the end of the day, if some people think that, that's a lot of respect for him. But, I got a lot of work to do for that.' If Maye continues to improve, it could set the stage for a new rivalry in the AFC East for years to come. There are obvious similarities in the playing styles with the mobility and arm strength, but Maye isn't a carbon copy of Allen. He can only be himself and do that to the best of his ability. With that said, Patriots fans would certainly be happy if Maye had the same career trajectory, but it's also important to temper expectations as he continues to grow into the player he'll ultimately become. Follow Patriots Wire on Twitter and Facebook. This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Patriots QB Drake Maye responds to Josh Allen comparisons
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Saquon Barkley ‘Shocked' by Donald Trump's Latest Sports Act
Saquon Barkley and the Philadelphia Eagles won the Super Bowl at the end of the 2024-25 NFL season, which meant they earned a trip to the White House, as all champions do. Of course, Barkley and the Eagles didn't need a trip to the President's Palace to get on the radar of Donald Trump, who has been known to be an avid sports fan. Barkley is undoubtedly one of the best athletes in the world, and he proved it last season by rushing for an NFL-high 2,005 yards last season. Barkley's effort earned him first-team All-Pro status for the first time in his career. Recently, President Trump put together what's being called a 'sports council' for sports, fitness, and nutrition. Apparently, he pieced together this council several months ago, when Barkley was part of a select group of athletes who received an invitation. Yet, Barkley declined the offer, citing a busy schedule as the reason. However, when the names of those included on the sports council were revealed, they included Barkley, which left the Eagles running back 'shocked.' 'A couple months ago, it was brought to my team about the council. So I'm not really too familiar with it. I felt like I am going to be super busy, so me and my family thought it would probably be of best interest to not accept that. I was definitely a little shocked when my name was mentioned. I'm assuming it's something great, so I appreciate it but was a little shocked when my name was mentioned.' Saquon Barkley on sports council invitation Other athletes included on the President's sports council include Nick Bosa, Tua Tagovailoa, Lawrence Taylor, Harrison Butker, Jack Nicklaus, Wayne Gretzky, and Bryson DeChambeau. Hopefully, those athletes accepted the offer and weren't surprised like Barkley was. Related: Related Headlines Giannis Antetokounmpo Trade Still Possible Before 2025 NBA Season Old Micah Parsons Interview Sparks Pittsburgh Steelers Trade Rumors Patriots WR Javon Baker, QB Josh Dobbs form prolific duo in training camp Patriots DC Terrell Williams suffers medical scare during Monday practice
