Patriots 2020 training camp recap: New England holds light practice as absentee list continues to grow

The New England Patriots’ busy training camp opening came to an end today. Coming four straight days of practices — including three of them in full pads — the team was back at work today for the final session of the week, but it was in light shoulder pads and shorts. The one-hour session itself therefore lacked the physicality of previous ones and was essentially a walkthrough.

With that said, let’s recap what happened at today’s practice.

Attendance

Absent: DT Beau Allen, LB Tashawn Bower, OT Yodny Cajuste, CB Stephon Gilmore, WR N’Keal Harry, LB Brandon King (Reserve/PUP) RB Sony Michel (Active/PUP), RB Lamar Miller (Active/PUP), S Adrian Phillips, LB Derek Rivers, CB D’Angelo Ross

Present but limited: S Kyle Dugger, WR Jakobi Meyers, K Justin Rohrwasser, QB Jarrett Stidham, WR Jeff Thomas

• Second-year cornerback D’Angelo Ross is a new addition to an ever-growing list of absentees — one that still includes All-Pro Stephon Gilmore (although reportedly not due to injury reasons) and former first-round draft pick N’Keal Harry.
• Kyle Dugger, who is one of the standouts from the Patriots’ early training camp, was limited after being a full participant the last four days.
• While Jarrett Stidham is reportedly battling a hip injury, the second-year quarterback was still present for today’s session. He did not participate fully, though, and sat out the majority of competitive drills despite them being run at half-speed.
• Justin Rohrwasser meanwhile, spent a significant portion of practice riding a stationary bike. He did not have any kicking attempts.

Injuries

• Rookie wide receiver Jeff Thomas came down awkwardly following a reception and was looked at by a trainer.

Practice notes

Quarterback performance: Jarrett Stidham N/A; Cam Newton N/A; Brian Hoyer N/A

• With Jarrett Stidham essentially sitting out today’s session, Cam Newton and Brian Hoyer shared the available quarterback reps during team drills. This is a continuation from yesterday’s practice: Stidham was also limited, which led to more opportunities for the two veterans. Given the nature of practice as a half-speed walkthrough, there are no passing statistics to report. That said, Hoyer to 28 snaps compared to Newton’s 25.
• Newton did hold a side-session together with Julian Edelman and Mohamed Sanu at one point, though. Over the first few days, those usually included a larger group of quarterbacks (namely all three competing for the starting job) and pass catchers. In general, the veteran passer again had some ups and some downs on the day.
• Rookie linebacker Josh Uche, who is having a solid start to his Patriots career so far, was moved all over the formation this week. Today, he added some reps as an inside linebacker alongside Ja’Whaun Bentley. Uche is more and more developing into the move-type player that veteran Dont’a Hightower usually is for the New England defense: being employed both on the edge and off the ball.
• As opposed to the first four practices open to the media, Julian Edelman saw some action on New England’s punt return teams. Edelman was a limited participant on Thursday, so his usage today — albeit in a low-speed walkthrough — represents a step in the right direction.
• While camp standout Gunner Olszewski continues to see regular snaps as part of the wide receiver rotation, he is also still competing for the role he held last year as New England’s top punt returner. Today, he shared reps with Edelman as well as undrafted rookies J.J. Taylor and Isaiah Zuber.