Tag: Tyquan Thornton

Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton back at practice on Tuesday

Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton was back on the practice field on Tuesday

New England Patriots wide receiver Tyquan Thorton returned to practice on Tuesday. That likely means he is close to returning from injured reserve.

The second-year wide receiver was placed on IR on August 30. He was hurt during joint practices against the Green Bay Packers over the summer. This was the second season in a row that he started the year on IR.

Thornton recorded 45 catches for 247 yards and two touchdowns last year. He began to play at a high level towards the end of the season. He recorded three catches for 60 yards and a touchdown against the Miami Dolphins on New Year’s Day.

The Patriots desperately need depth at the wide receiver position. Although Thornton has yet to make a substantial impact when healthy, this could be an opportunity for a fresh start and a chance for him to bounce back.

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5 Patriots players eligible to return from IR/PUP lists this week

Five players on IR/PUP lists are eligible to return for the Patriots this week

There isn’t much hope for the New England Patriots on the injury front these days.

They just lost two of their best defensive players, Christian Gonzalez and Matthew Judon, in the same football game. All of their starting cornerbacks are out with injuries, and right tackle is a revolving door of random bodies just trying to make it work.

The good news is the Patriots are past the four-game mark, which means multiple players on injured reserve and the physically unable to perform lists are eligible to return this week.

Any return would feel like a boost at this point with the Patriots sitting at 1-3 and looking up at a seemingly impossible hill to climb in the AFC East division.

Here are the five players eligible to return for the Patriots this week.

Things aren’t looking good for Patriots’ 2022 draft class

One year later, the Patriots’ 2022 NFL draft class is in rough shape.

The New England Patriots’ 2022 NFL draft class was full of promise after Year 1.

Fans saw a Day 1 starter in Cole Strange and saw promise in Pierre Strong Jr, Tyquan Thornton, Bailey Zappe and Jack Jones, while Marcus Jones was an All-Pro returner and spark plug for a dormant 2022 Patriots team.

The Patriots’ offensive draft picks were selected with a west coast zone offense in mind, which was one that the team tried to implement under Matt Patricia. There was hope that quarterback Mac Jones would thrive in a system like the one San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan perfected.

The issue was the Patriots lacked the personnel and coaching to actually do it. With only one outside runner like Strong Jr., one agile lineman in Strange and one deep threat in Thornton, the Patriots were relying on rookie players and a rookie offensive coordinator to try to implement a unique system.

Now that Bill O’Brien has returned as the offensive coordinator, the Patriots moved on from Strong for tackle depth, while also cutting 2022 picks Chasen Hines, Bailey Zappe, Andrew Stueber and Kevin Harris.

Harris, Stueber, and Zappe all returned to the practice squad.

Thornton, was placed on injured reserve after making the initial 53-man roster, meaning he will have now missed eight games in his first two seasons without showing much production. The Patriots drafted two receivers that fit their offensive mold better in 2023 with rookies Kayshon Boutte and Demario Douglas, both of whom have already flashed potential.

They are reportedly not happy with Zappe as their No. 2 quarterback, and they would like to find a new veteran backup that fits the offense more after Zappe’s abysmal summer under Bill O’Brien.

The team would still like to work with Zappe to develop parts of his game, but they have in essence moved on from the Year 2 quarterback who was pegged as the No. 2 option as early as Week 1 in 2022.

Strange has actually been really good, and he also added some power to play in the system. I believe the team likes him, and he could stick around long-term.

But things could be different for Thornton, who has now missed eight games in two years. Boutte and Douglas have already produced on the field, and if Thornton starts slow, there is a possibility the team could look to move him at the trade deadline, which would signify a change in their offensive philosophy.

In 2023, more evidence pointed to this as the Patriots went and drafted three lineman, who all fit a power system. Atonio Mafi is a Mike Onwenu clone, and Jake Andrews has a similar skill set to Ted Karras, while Sidy Sow resembles the depth tackles the Patriots typically like.

Those additions coupled with the ones in the receiver room prove that the Patriots offense has a developmental pipeline more aligned with O’Brien.

There is a chance by the end of the year that Strange, Marcus Jones, Jack Jones and Sam Roberts are the only players left from the class on the active roster. It’s a sudden and disappointing turnaround for a draft class that initially seemed full of promise.

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Report: Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton placed on IR with shoulder injury

Tyquan Thornton is reportedly being placed on injured reserve.

For a second straight year, the New England Patriots are placing wide receiver Tyquan Thornton on injured reserve with a shoulder injury to start the season.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Mike Reiss reported the news on Wednesday.

It’s a disappointing turn of events for Thornton, who is hoping to bounce back after an underwhelming rookie season. After missing the first four games with a collarbone injury, he returned in Week 5 of the 2022 regular season, where he went on to haul in 22 catches for 247 yards and two touchdowns in 13 games as a rookie.

There was hope that he would emerge as one of the team’s key offensive playmakers with a more experienced play-caller in Bill O’Brien running the show. Instead, it was an up-and-down showing from the 2022 second-round draft pick in training camp and the preseason.

Those struggles couldn’t have come at a worse time with rookie sixth-round draft picks Demario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte making waves. Thornton’s absence now gives both of the young receivers an opportunity to surpass him on the depth chart.

Thornton will be eligible to return for the Patriots’ Week 5 meeting with the New Orleans Saints on October 8.

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Madden 24: See the ratings for entire Patriots roster

Did Madden get the Patriots’ ratings right this year?

We are closing in on the start of the 2023 regular season, which means only one thing: It’s Madden season.

With the recent release of EA’s “Madden NFL 24”, the New England Patriots weren’t given much respect at all as far as the player ratings are concerned. Sadly, that’s what happens when a team is an absolute mess and misses the playoffs.

But there is hope for things to be better this time around with all of the new additions to the roster, including the return of Bill O’Brien as offensive coordinator. The team also made the big splash signing at running back with former two-time NFL leading rusher Ezekiel Elliott joining an offensive backfield that already had burgeoning star rusher Rhamondre Stevenson.

Elliott isn’t listed as a Patriots running back on this list, but that will surely change in a future update. For now, let’s take a look at the overall rating for every Patriots player on the Madden 24 roster.

Winners and losers from Patriots’ loss to Texans in preseason opener

Who were the winners and losers in the Patriots’ preseason opener?

A sluggish offensive performance ended in the New England Patriots getting pounded at home in a 20-9 loss to the Houston Texans in Thursday’s preseason opener.

It wasn’t the best of showings from the Patriots, but it was also the first of three preseason games. There’s no need in hitting the panic button just yet.

There were some serious positives to take away from the team’s effort. One rookie defensive player had Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud running for his life, while a rookie offensive player scored the one and only touchdown in the game for the Patriots.

Let’s take a look at the winners and losers from Thursday night’s game.

WATCH: Tyquan Thornton extends drive with incredible leaping catch

Tyquan Thornton climbed the ladder with this incredible catch.

New England Patriots wide receiver Tyquan Thornton climbed the ladder and made an incredible catch in traffic in Thursday night’s preseason game against the Houston Texans.

Thornton has had a roller coaster career to this point.

After dealing with injury issues last year, the second-year wideout looks to make an impact in 2023. New England has added wide receiver depth, making this an important preseason for Thornton.

The former Baylor star made an impact early on Thursday night, when hauling in a leaping catch on third down. The catch went for 27 yards on a play where he showed off his size and athleticism.

New England could not score on the drive, but it was a positive drive for Thornton, who is looking to assert himself in the wide receiver room.

Thornton’s progress will be important as the preseason continues. The Patriots are counting on him to break out as the next go-to outside receiver for Mac Jones.

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5 takeaways from Day 12 of Patriots training camp practice

The Patriots ramped things up at practice in preparation for their preseason opener.

The New England Patriots put a cherry on top of their Week 1 prep work for their upcoming preseason opener at Tuesday’s training camp practice.

It was a padded practice that shifted focus to those expected to suit up for Thursday night’s game. Those hoping to see defensive end Trey Flowers back in a Patriots uniform will have to wait a little while longer. After signing with the Patriots, the former defensive star was placed on the active/PUP list by the team.

There were several absences and a big return for the Patriots at practice. The full list of absences is as follows:

DE Trey Flowers

G Michael Onwenu

G Cole Strange

G Bill Murray

OT Calvin Anderson

ST Cody Davis

RB/WR Ty Montgomery

OT Calvin Anderson

This was likely the final day fans will be allowed to attend a Patriots training camp practice this year. Let’s jump into some takeaways from the latest practice before the preseason opener.

Stock up, stock down for Patriots ahead of preseason opener

Who’s stock is up and who’s stock is down for the Patriots?

The New England Patriots are approaching their first preseason game of the 2023 season on Thursday, which will be an important test for every player on the 90-man roster. Each player is fighting for a role and an opportunity to make the 53-man roster.

As each week passes, we will be taking a look at players or position groups and breaking down how they have been performing this summer.

Stock watching is a way of sharing what we see and how a player is performing or building off of their past performances. Generally, the more a stock drops, the lower their roster lock status becomes.

As with all roster moves, there are multiple facets that get taken into consideration, like contracts, draft status and positional need. Let’s take a look at who is up and who is down in the Patriots’ stock watch.

6 takeaways from Day 10 of Patriots training camp practice

The Patriots were back on the practice field after a day off. Here are six takeaways from Day 10 of Patriots training camp.

After taking a Saturday off, it was back to work for the New England Patriots for Day 10 of training camp practice on Sunday.

The team is slated to face the Houston Texans in their preseason opener on Thursday night. So everything they’re doing from here on out is clearly in preparation for that game.

There were several players, including multiple starters, missing from practice. Some have been on the list since the start of training camp, while others are popping up for the very first time. Here’s the full list of absences:

G Michael Onwenu

ST Cody Davis

C David Andrews

CB Jonathan Jones

ST Matthew Slater

G Cole Strange

RB/WR Ty Montgomery

OT Calvin Anderson

Offensive tackle Trent Brown did not participate in team drills, but he was on the field. Let’s take a look at six observations from Sunday’s training camp practice.