Bill Belichick said before practice that the New England Patriots were “not competing against the weather” during their training camp session on Thursday. But at times, it felt like they were indeed battling the conditions.
Receiver Kendrick Bourne, for example, had four targets in a row bounce off his hands. They wouldn’t all qualify as drops, but if a ball hits a receiver’s hands, he should catch it (most of the time). And then there was quarterback Mac Jones, who fumbled his exchange with backup center Marcus Martin at one point during practice.
There was plenty of sloppiness from the offense, which the defense — and particularly cornerback J.C. Jackson — seemed to enjoy. Jackson was among the best players on the field, with breakups on passes intended for Nelson Agholor and Kristian Wilkerson. Jackson finished with three PBUs on the day.
Here’s more from the Patriots’ eighth training camp session on Thursday.