Biggest winners and losers from Patriots’ OTAs and minicamp

Who stood out and who didn’t at the Patriots’ spring practices?

Not everybody came out of organized team activities and mandatory minicamp a winner for the New England Patriots.

That doesn’t mean they won’t bounce back in the summer and turn things around at training camp. It’s always important to avoid overreacting to spring practices, especially when players aren’t even working out in pads.

But then again, the teams wouldn’t be meeting if OTAs and minicamp weren’t considered important offseason work. There were clearly standouts for the Patriots on the field, and on the other end of the spectrum, there were also players that struggled.

Here are the biggest winners and losers from the Patriots’ spring practices:

Christian Gonzalez turning heads in New England Patriots OTAs

Former Oregon Ducks cornerback Christian Gonzalez is quickly proving he is NFL material with the Patriots.

The Ducks’ secondary was better as soon as Christian Gonzalez stepped onto the Oregon practice field last Spring.

He is doing the same thing on the next level with the New England Patriots.

According to PatriotsWire, Gonzalez is turning many heads in the team’s mini-camp and OTAs with his play and quick grasp of the defensive playbook.

This is what writer Jordy McElroy said of the former All-Conference standout.

Like so many others, I went into the 2023 NFL draft with the former Oregon defensive standout as the No. 1 cornerback on the board. So it was surprising to still see him sitting there at No. 17 when the Patriots were on the clock. We could one day look back at that pick as one of the biggest steals of the entire draft. Gonzalez has come as advertised on the practice field with multiple players. He has size, technique and rare playmaking abilities.

Gonzalez has also made catches in summer camp that are usually reserved for wide receivers and not cornerbacks.

New England has a history of garnering elite talent in later rounds, and although Gonzalez was a first-rounder, he looks to be a lot better than your normal No. 17 pick in the draft.

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Riley Reiff struggles paints grim picture for Patriots’ offensive line

The offensive line concerns for the Patriots could linger into the season

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Veteran offensive tackle Riley Reiff was brought in as a short-term solution for what has turned into a long-term problem for the New England Patriots.

With OTAs and minicamp in the rearview and the dead heat of summer training camp quickly approaching, it’s clear that the offensive tackle position could continue to be a major trouble spot for the Patriots.

The pads haven’t even come on, and per The Athletic’s Chad Graff, Reiff was already downgraded to working with the second team in the spring practices. It’s obviously no picnic of a matchup with Matthew Judon and Josh Uche coming off the edges, but the struggles at tackle are sticking out like a New York Jets jersey at Gillette Stadium.

Trent Brown being out hasn’t helped matters, either. He’s the one legitimate starter at the position the team can rely on, and he spent his one minicamp practice working on conditioning.

Graff wrote:

At least in spring practices, those decisions looked concerning. Reiff struggled so much that he was relegated to the second-team offense; Anderson and McDermott were constantly beaten by Matthew Judon and Josh Uche; left tackle Trent Brown, the lone stalwart at the position, skipped OTAs and missed the start of minicamp, then was sent to do conditioning work instead of practicing with the team.

Reiff, 34, was always going to be a long-shot option for the Patriots. The veteran offensive lineman didn’t even start in all 16 games for the Chicago Bears last season.

But the Patriots were still desperate enough to give him $4.1 million guaranteed on his contract, which was an early indication that he would play a significant role on offense. Perhaps things will settle down as he becomes more acclimated to the system at training camp.

There are few options out there for New England this late in the game. They could consider trying rookie guard Sidy Sow out at tackle, given his experience at the position in college, but there are no guarantees he’d be ready by the start of the season.

To make matters worse, the Patriots will be at the mercy of Brown’s health. If he goes down with an injury, a huge problem would quickly turn into a catastrophe.

Making a splash signing for wideout DeAndre Hopkins won’t save the Patriots if they can’t protect their quarterback.

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10 best video highlights from Patriots’ spring practices

Here are the best video highlights from the Patriots’ OTAs and minicamp practices

The New England Patriots experienced a sense of rejuvenation through their spring practices.

Whether it was organized team activities or minicamp, there was a team connectedness, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, that wasn’t there last year. Perhaps a better way of phrasing it is that things finally felt normal for the Patriots.

Bill O’Brien was leading the offense, and both Steve Belichick and Jerod Mayo had their prints on the defense, while coach Bill Belichick captained the ship. The smell of saltwater is already in the air as the Patriots get set to sail for the 2023 season.

Let’s take a look at 10 of the most highlight-worthy and just straight up entertaining moments captured on video during New England’s spring practices:

Justin Herbert ‘pleased’ with effort of Chargers teammates at minicamp

Justin Herbert said that he was “pleased” with the effort of his teammates at the Chargers’ offseason program.

Offseason minicamps are a great way for teams to stay in rhythm in late spring, and quarterback Justin Herbert seemed impressed with his teammate’s effort at the Chargers’ offseason practices in his comments.

Asked about his experience at minicamp, Herbert said that he and his teammates emptied the tank, even if it didn’t seem like it lasted for an exceptionally long time.

It went by really fast. I thought we had a lot of good work out there. We had a lot of guys come out this offseason. I thought that was huge for us to be able to work together and kind of grow together with this new offense. I was really pleased with the effort that everyone gave this year.

Now heading for the slowest part of the year in the NFL, Herbert and the rest of the roster will lick their wounds, rest for about a month, and get ready for training camp in the preseason in late July.

If Herbert’s assessment is to be believed, fans should expect the team to strive for perfection when the next phase of the new season starts next month.

10 biggest OTAs and minicamp standouts for Patriots

Who stood out the most for the Patriots during the spring practices?

The New England Patriots have finished up the last of their spring practices and will be taking the next few weeks off before returning in late July for training camp.

Even though the players weren’t in pads, things clearly got competitive on the practice field. Just ask Anfernee Jennings, Christian Barmore and Cole Strange, who were all involved in a brief dust-up during organized team activities.

We didn’t get a full course meal, but we were able to feast on enough appetizers to know this team is ready for training camp. The defense could be a real juggernaut in 2023, and the additional playmakers, particularly the rookies, could play a major role right out of the gates.

Meanwhile, the offense has shown real strides in the spring practices. This is no longer the predicted train wreck unit is was last year around this time.

Here are the 10 biggest standouts during the spring practices for the Patriots:

Chiefs Check-in: Doldrums of the offseason temporarily set in

The #Chiefs had a quiet weekend after their Super Bowl ring ceremony on Friday ahead of the slowest part of the offseason:

Chiefs Check-in is our online newsletter at Chiefs Wire, running Monday-Friday mornings. Subscribe to get more Chiefs news delivered to your inbox every day.

The Kansas City Chiefs have precious weeks to recover and prepare for training camp and the preseason. With mandatory minicamp and OTAs in the books, the last phase of the 2023 offseason is in effect, and news is sure to be slow with the exception of a few roster moves and social media hype posts until the end of July.

Check out all the best Chiefs stories and tidbits from around the NFL on this edition of Chiefs Check-in for the morning of Monday, June 19th:

Brandon Staley not letting externalities affect Chargers’ preparation for 2023

Brandon Staley responded when asked about the lofty expectations placed on the Chargers ahead of the 2023 season.

The Chargers are entering put-up-or-shut-up territory in Brandon Staley’s third season as the team’s head coach.

The team has plenty of talent on its roster, but in a highly-competitive conference, they will have to defy the odds to bring Los Angeles a Super Bowl title in 2023.

For all the talk in the media about what the Chargers might (or might not) be capable of, though, Staley said that he is drowning out as much of the noise as possible.

Asked about the weight of the lofty expectations placed on his team, who some consider being championship contenders, Staley made it clear that externalities will not be considered as Los Angeles prepares for the new season.

I know the team that we have. The players that were talked about in that way last year, they’re still all on our team. We’ve added even more pieces. We are confident in who we are and we’re just confident in the work that’s ahead and that we have the guys that are capable of doing it. We’re excited to get to training camp. But I love coaching this group. I know this group is really good.

These comments came just as the team was wrapping up their mandatory minicamp and off-season program. With training camp ahead of them, the Chargers will have to wait until July to start proving themselves worthy of the pre-season hype.

Time will tell if Los Angeles can rise to the top in 2023, but if Staley is to be believed, he certainly doesn’t care what anyone outside of the Chargers’ organization has to think.

Broncos coach Sean Payton careful to not write off players too quickly

Sean Payton is careful to not judge a player too quickly in the spring because pads coming on in the summer can change everything.

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Denver Broncos boss Sean Payton has 15 years of head coach experience and one lesson he’s learned during that time is to not write off a player too quickly.

The Broncos recently wrapped up organized team activities and mandatory minicamp, which are light, non-padded practices held in the spring. Payton has learned to not judge a player too harshly this time of year.

“You’re always guarded,” Payton said on June 1. “I’ll give you an example. We drafted in the seventh round of player — Marques Colston — in that first ’06 draft. He was a compensatory seven, so towards the end of the draft. During this period of time, he was a little overweight. Not a lot, but as a receiver, he was having back spasms.

“Meanwhile, we had a sixth-round pick at receiver, too, who was the Biletnikoff [Award winner], and he was magnificent out here. Then training camp came and all of a sudden, we began to see a little different player in Marques. He began to pick things up and by the time we got to the start of the regular season, he was our starting ‘X’ [receiver]. You just want to be cautious not to judge too quickly or evaluate too quickly. You’re working on their improvement.” 

Colston didn’t look great early in his first NFL offseason, but he went on to become a Super Bowl champion with the Saints and he now ranks No. 1 in franchise history for receptions (711), receiving yards (9,759) and receiving touchdowns (72).

After an underwhelming spring, pads changed everything in the summer.

“That’s kind of been my experience with not just the receivers, but with a lot of these positions,” Payton said. “The pads sometimes can define a player. There will be a couple of guys here that we’re watching and then when training camp begins, all of a sudden, the profile changes, because we’re now in full pads. It’s hard to be in these drills defensively with your assignment, your alignment and your technique. When the pads come on, you get a better feel for your team. That’s important, too.” 

Payton also noted that coaches have to do a good job to make sure players understand schemes and concepts so they can be fairly evaluated on the field.

I don’t want to say hold judgment, but patience and making sure — the No. 1 thing is, ‘Does he know what to do?’” Payton said. “The worst thing we can do as a coach is confuse a player and then he’s playing at percent speed because he’s uncertain. That hinders the evaluation. Now ultimately, they have to get it and sometimes it’s not for everyone [if] it’s just too much. But they’re picking it up. I’m pleased with that. It’s gone well so far.”

After wrapping up spring practices last week, up next for the Broncos is training camp, which begins in late July. The pads will come on at camp — and that’s when the real evaluation begins.

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Brandon Staley says rookies ‘proved themselves’ at Chargers’ offseason program

Brandon Staley said that the Chargers’ rookie class “proved themselves” during offseason practices.

The Chargers’ 2023 rookie class looks particularly strong heading into the new season.

With multiple players in the group expected to take on important roles during the team’s 17-game schedule, head coach Brandon Staley will rely on his younger talent to buoy the team over the course of the coming season.

Asked about which players stood out to him during offseason workouts in a press conference after practice, Staley made it clear that Los Angeles’ first-year players have impressed and seem poised for a great season.

“I think all of the rookies that we drafted, I’m really excited to work with,” Staley explained. “I think they all proved themselves in one shape or form. Certainly, with the linemen, you’re not getting to see them in that way of the physicality and the pads and stuff.

“I think the guys that we drafted, and there are going to be some undrafted guys that I know that are going to make an impression on you guys in the training camp, I’m confident in that. The rookies, I think, really showed a lot of professionalism. They showed the ability that they’re going to be a factor come training camp.”

Particularly for the undrafted players in the rookie class, the training camp and preseason will determine their use in the Chargers’ game plans. Still, Staley’s words of praise are a sure sign that the up-and-comers will factor into the equation.

With a little over a month between the NFL hopefuls and their dress rehearsal for action in the league, the hype surrounding their potential seems to have reached a fever pitch.