It was back to the bottom of the mountain—as quarterback Tom Brady would say—for the reigning Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, who opened up their first week of training camp. There were several familiar faces from last season, many new faces and even faces from the past.
Turnover is a common occurrence for every team each season, including the Patriots, but the path back to the Super Bowl could be an even steeper climb for Brady and company in 2019.
That fact hit hard when watching the offense operate without legendary tight end Rob Gronkowski, who retired in the offseason. There have been numerous teases of him potentially returning to the team, but the first week of practice was proof the Patriots will have to figure out a way to move forward without one of their most dominant players.
More importantly, Brady will have to move forward with a completely new group of receivers. A serious problem that would constitute as a panic situation for other quarterbacks in the league is simply another day at the office for the greatest to ever play the position.
Here are five takeaways from Week 1 of Patriots training camp.
Gilly Island is no one-hit wonder
Rarely have quarterbacks even considered looking in Stephon Gilmore’s direction on the field, and when they do, bad things tend to happen.
Gilmore’s elite potential has never been questioned, but it has also never been fully realized until his breakout 2018 season. Not even Jalen Ramsey and Patrick Peterson had a better year than Gilmore, who rebranded himself as the new warden in the league putting receivers on lockdown.
That otherworldly dominance is continuing on the training camp practice field with Gilmore blanketing receivers to the point where quarterbacks are looking the other way. It makes sense considering he was recently voted into the NFL’s Top 100 players by his peers as the best corner in football.
His mere presence in the defensive backfield, along with J.C. Jackson, the McCourty twins and Patrick Chung, gives the Patriots arguably the best secondary in football.
Go ask the Los Angeles Rams if they disagree.
Undrafted players stepping up at receiver
The biggest question mark entering training camp was how the new-look receiving corps would perform without Julian Edelman and Gronkowski on the field.
Edelman is currently mending a broken thumb, which could potentially keep him out of action for most, if not all, of the preseason. Veteran wideout Demaryius Thomas was also seen on the sidelines playing pitch-and-catch with Brady, but he remains on the PUP list as he continues his recovery from an Achilles injury.
So who are the new guys stepping up with clear vacancies at receiver?
Maurice Harris, a former undrafted free agent, picked up where he left off in minicamp by making another splash at the beginning of training camp. There have been times when he has clearly looked like the best receiver on the field. However, as the week went on, that momentum has now shifted to undrafted rookie Jakobi Meyers, who is already developing a rapport on the field with Brady.
First-round draft pick N’Keal Harry is also beginning to come on more after a slow start. I know some of you were expecting him to transform into the next Randy Moss his first time on the Patriots practice field, but the development of young receivers doesn’t typically work that way.
Gordon files for reinstatement
Coach Bill Belichick’s news on the lingering suspension of Josh Gordon was no news.
“We don’t have anything to do with Josh Gordon,” said Belichick, when addressing media members on Thursday. “He’s suspended. You need to talk to the league. We have no control over Josh Gordon.”
The former All-Pro receiver is still serving out an indefinite suspension for violating the league’s drug policy. There is hope within the locker that he will return at some point this season, but the team is already preparing for life without him.
On Saturday, news broke that Gordon had filed for reinstatement by the league, which means news could be on the way regarding his status this season.
While the league has been mum on updates, Gordon hasn’t completely withdrawn himself from his teammates. He did appear at the team’s ring ceremony, and he also popped up on social media over the summer working out with Brady.
Time will tell how soon the dynamic duo can officially resume working together.
Questions lingering at tight end
It’s clear Gronkowski brought more to the Patriots than spiked footballs and bad “69” jokes. He was a devastating blocker and as great a mismatch at receiver as we have ever seen. There clearly is no replacing that sort of generational talent with one player.
However, the Patriots hoped they would be able to at least cushion the blow by going out and signing veteran tight end Benjamin Watson. While Watson has looked like the top guy at the position in training camp, he is also slated to miss the first four games of the season after being handed a suspension for violating the league’s drug policy.
Ouch.
Another player that has stood out on the field is former undrafted free agent Stephen Anderson. Granted, the 230-pound tight end is lacking in size when it comes to putting his hand in the dirt and blocking, but he has showed great speed and reliable hands as a receiver at training camp. There are sure to be plenty of moving parts once the season begins, but Anderson could emerge as a key contributor with Watson sidelined.
Michael Bennett embracing the Patriot Way
Three-time Pro Bowl defensive end Michael Bennett sung Belichick’s praises when arriving to training camp. He arrived late after being granted permission by the Patriots coach to attend to a personal matter with his family.
“I just had a family issue that I had to go take care of. I was lucky coach [Bill] Belichick – it’s nice when you have a coach that sees you as a human, sees you as a human being, not just a number and you’re able to go talk to him, tell him what’s going on, and you’re able to go take care of it,” Bennett said in a post-practice scrum. “That just makes you want to play harder for a coach. When he believes in you, and lets you take care of your family first.”
The Patriots certainly need all the help they can get from Bennett after losing Trey Flowers in the offseason. Despite turning 34 years old in November, the fearsome pass rusher is already proving he has plenty of gas left in the tank. Given his talent and wealth of experience, an argument could be made that he’ll actually be a short-term upgrade over Flowers.
There’s also the trickle-down effect of him sharing pass-rushing knowledge with his younger teammates, which is starting to become a common theme in the locker room.
