The New England Patriots wrapped up their first mandatory minicamp of the 2016 season and reports are surfacing of how the players fared. While the practice was not open to the public, media were present and able to report upon completion.
Notes are compiled from NESN's Doug Kyed, ProJo's Mark Daniels, WEEI's Ryan Hannable, and ESPN's Mike Reiss.
Absentees: WR Danny Amendola (knee), RB LeGarrette Blount (hip), S Nate Ebner (Olympics), WR Julian Edelman (foot), TE Rob Gronkowski (?), S Duron Harmon (?), G Tre Jackson (knee), G Josh Kline (shoulder), RB Dion Lewis (ACL), G Shaq Mason (knee), CB Logan Ryan (?), T Nate Solder (biceps), T Sebastian Vollmer (?)
Bill Belichick on Rob Gronkowski not practicing: "There were a lot of players that weren't on the field. They were doing other things."
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) June 7, 2016
Returned: DT Alan Branch, CB Malcolm Butler, LS Joe Cardona, DT Frank Kearse were present after skipping the voluntary OTAs. Butler missed OTAs due to family reasons.
Quarterbacks: Jacoby Brissett was sharper in this outing, as he connected on 28 of 40 passes. For comparison, Tom Brady completed 31 of 40 passes and Jimmy Garoppolo completed 35 of 43 passes. Rob Ninkovich picked off Tom Brady in 7v7s, per ProJo.
Brady Fun Time: Martellus Bennett continued to work with Brady on the side to improve their connection.
Secondary looking sharp: Cyrus Jones made a few solid plays, per WEEI. Devin McCourty and Jonathan Jones defended passes and Cedric Thompson intercepted Brissett, per ProJo.
Punt players: If undrafted free agent rookie CB V'Angelo Bentley makes the squad, it's because he has a possible future as a punt returner. He was joined by Cyrus Jones and Keshawn Martin, per ProJo.
Foxborough Flu candidate: 7th round WR Devin Lucien injured his foot and did not return, per the Herald's Jeff Howe. That said, MassLive's Kevin Duffy and WEEI's Chris Price note that Lucien was playing catch on the field with his high school teammate Chris Harper, and the two were the last players on the field.
Misc Notes: Bryan Stork saw more time at center, per the Herald's Jeff Howe. Former WR Troy Brown spent time with the receivers, per CSNNE's Phil Perry. Chris Hogan was the best wide receiver on the field, per Howe.
Play of the Day:
Dobson had an unbelievable one-handed 50-yard catch in the end zone in double coverage over Biggers and Roberts. Then caught one over Butler
— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) June 7, 2016
Play of the day: Aaron Dobson's one-handed catch in end zone on a bomb from Jimmy G. Darryl Roberts/EJ Biggers were in tight coverage.
— Kevin Duffy (@KevinRDuffy) June 7, 2016
Garoppolo connected with Aaron Dobson on a beautiful throw for a 50-yard TD in 11 on 11s. @MikeGiardi went nuts.
— Ryan Hannable (@RyanHannable) June 7, 2016
Play of day: WR Aaron Dobson a one-handed catch on a long-bomb TD from Jimmy Garoppolo. Dobson fell to ground after making catch.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) June 7, 2016
Play of the day: Aaron Dobson with a one-handed left-handed catch on a long pass from Jimmy Garoppolo in double coverage.
— Erik Frenz (@ErikFrenz) June 7, 2016
Let's go Aaron Dobson!!
Videos and Pictures:
Patriots just wrapped up first day of minicamp behind Gillette Stadium. Here's Brady and Garoppolo throwing pic.twitter.com/VwJFZVtDHO
— Ryan Hannable (@RyanHannable) June 7, 2016
Here's Tom Brady throwing to running backs pic.twitter.com/59ikr97byn
— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) June 7, 2016
Here's Tom Brady pic.twitter.com/XAV3qFpwcw
— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) June 7, 2016