Pats Pulpit
Who stood out during the Patriots’ practice on Saturday, for better or worse.
Coming off a walkthrough, the New England Patriots significantly increased the intensity and competition on Saturday. Their 90-minute practice on the fields behind Gillette Stadium saw big plays on both sides of the ball.
You can recap the action here. And as always, here is out list of standout performers from training camp session No. 4.
WR DeMario Douglas: Pop continues to... well... pop. The third-year wide receiver has been the Patriots’ most productive and consistent playmaker on offense so far this summer, and Saturday might have been his best work to date. Aligning in his usual spot as a starting interior receiver — usually sharing the field with Stefon Diggs and Kayshon Boutte — he made several highlight-reel plays.
The biggest among them came on an off-script touchdown of 50-60 yards from Drake Maye in 11-on-11s. While the QB delivered a pin-point pass while on the move, the receiver himself also did his part by staying alive and getting behind defenders Christian Gonzalez and Kyle Dugger. He also caught a contested back-shoulder fade over Marcus Jones and made a chunk play on a crossing pattern.
Even with the addition of Diggs, Douglas has the strongest case to become New England’s WR1 and Maye’s go-to guy this fall.
RB TreVeyon Henderson: There is speed, and then there is TreVeyon Henderson’s speed. The second-round rookie, who was not involved with the starting-level offense during Friday’s walkthrough, had a productive day that included a would-be touchdown on a deep pass from Joshua Dobbs; he also showcased his speed on a screen play that saw him explode up the field. In addition, he spent time with the kickoff returners as well.
RB Lan Larison: The undrafted rookie was involved in two of the negative plays of the day. Not only did he fumble a kickoff return, he also was the target on Joshua Dobbs’ interception. Larison was covered tightly by Jack Gibbens on the play, who was able to reach around to knock the ball in the air and allow Jabrill Peppers to pick it off.
WR Javon Baker: Is the second-year wide receiver going full “Call the ambulance, but not for me!” mode? Not yet, but Saturday was a step in the right direction after a quiet start to training camp. Baker had one of the plays of the day when he hauled in a 60ish-yard touchdown from Drake Maye during 7-on-7s, sprinting past defensive back Jaylinn Hawkins on a well-executed double move.
WR Stefon Diggs: Diggs has been one of the pleasant surprises of camp so far, but he was comparatively anonymous on Saturday from a production perspective. While he continues to run with the starters and was given plenty of chances to make plays, he caught just one of three targets from Drake Maye against Christian Gonzalez during 7-on-7s and only two passes in 11-on-11 work. He...
