Roche: Packers defense took it to Patriots in first day of joint practices
GREEN BAY, Wis. - Just a few thoughts from the Patriots-Packers joint practice Day One in Green Bay, a place that just oozes history everywhere you go.
*The Pats had an old school walk to practice. They bussed over, changed in the Lambeau Field locker rooms, then walked across the street to the practice field. As they walked there were fans lined up to see them (and the Packers a bit further down the street). Loved that David Andrews, Lawrence Guy and Matthew Slater were among those to stop and say hello. Bill Belichick was great in talking about the history of the place too.
*Both teams did their stretching and fundamentals work on separate fields, then ran through situational football on the Ray Nitschke Field.
*Ezekiel Elliott's deal became official just moments before practice. Lots of handshakes and hellos for the running back wearing number 15. He took part in individual and team drills, but did not participate in the controlled scrimmage with the Packers.
Here's what Bill Belichick had to say about Elliott before practice on Wednesday:
Q: Just your thoughts on Ezekiel Elliott, his signing was official just a few minutes ago. Your thoughts on bringing him on board?
BB: Yeah, it's good to have Zeke. We had a good visit with him, and I look forward to working with him.
Q: What does he bring to the team?
BB: Yeah, we'll see. I've never coached Zeke, but I'm glad we have him. I spent time with him last night and on the trip, on terminology and plays and protections, things like that. We'll work him in there when he's ready and we'll see how that goes.
Q: Will he be participating in practices today or tomorrow?
BB: We'll see how it goes.
And here are the thoughts of Mac Jones:
Q: What do you think of [Ezekiel] Elliott's signing?
MJ: Yeah, Zeke's awesome so far. He already was jumping in there, getting some reps, so that was pretty cool to see fresh off a plane trying to come out here and compete. But yeah, he seems like a great fit. We really just want to take him under our wing. He's a guy who has played a lot of football in the NFL, so we're just trying to learn from him, too.
Q: Bill said that he went through some plays with him, some blocking techniques, that kind of stuff. Were you able to go through any of that with Zeke so far?
MJ: Yeah, I think he just got here, you know? He was like in his pajamas, so we're really just trying to get him some Patriots gear and make sure he's good to go. He knows football; it's just the terminology's a little different. I'm not worried about him. I think most importantly, the line is doing a really good job in the running game right now, so I know he sees that and he's excited. I know him and Rhamondre [Stevenson] are going to be a great one-two punch, and the other guys, too. You can't forget about the other guys in our room. It's going to be good.
Also, interesting answer from Mac on having to be one of the QBs to succeed Tom Brady:
Q: You replaced, not directly replaced, [Tom] Brady, but you had to replace Brady. What were the expectations like? How did you handle those, and any advice for Jordan [Love] as he goes through kind of the same deal?
MJ: Yeah, I think Tom Brady's the greatest quarterback to ever play in the NFL. So, to follow up on him, it's just trying to chase the standard that he set, every day. Honestly, we're definitely two different players, and that's the only advice I'd have. Just continue to grow and be yourself, right? That's all you can do, is put your best foot forward and compete. But yeah, it's definitely big shoes to fill.
Q: Do you ever still feel, a little bit, the shadow of Tom and the presence of him, because he was so about of the organization over the past 20 years? Does it still resonate with you?
MJ: "Yeah, I got drafted three years ago, so it's just trying to move on from that part of it and understanding how you can set the standard that he already had set, you know? For us, every year's a new year and you've got to go out there and earn it. I know that he did that every year, and I'm going to continue to do that as well."
The Patriots had the following players out:
OL Mike Owenu (PUP, but made the trip)
ST Corey Davis (PUP)...
DE Trey Flowers (PUP, as reported by Mark Daniels)
OL Calvin Anderson (NFI list)
OL Cole Strange
OL Kody Russey
CB Jon Jones
TE Mike Gesicki (asked Bill Belichick about him: "we have a number of players that are in various levels of participation. So, we just take everybody day by day.")
RB Ty Montgomery
The Patriots starting offensive line was the same that we've seen for three straight practices:
LT Trent Brown
LG Atonio Mafi
C David Andrews
RG Riley Reiff
RT Sidy Sow
*I thought the Patriots offense looked good out of the chute vs GB. Mac Jones had early completions to Juju Smith-Schuster, Rhamondre Stevenson, DeVante Parker, and a near sideline completion to Hunter Henry.
*However, as the day went on, the Packers defense took it to New England. There were sacks (or what would have been), throw aways, overthrows, and pass break-ups. We also saw penalties for holding, a false start, and offensive pass interference.
*The Pats top defense gave up some big plays to QB Jordan Love and WRs Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs. Rookie CB Christian Gonzalez had a day of learning as he appeared to have some trouble.
*Jack Jones was jawing quite a bit towards the end of practice and had to be guided off the field at one point by Jabril Peppers.
*Bill Belichick seemed upset with Mac towards the end of practice during situations. Mac explained it was just him wanting to do the same situation again - after the Pats had made a FG.
The two teams will hold another joint practice on Thursday. Having covered many of these (Detroit, Philly, Carolina, Washington, Las Vegas, NY), seems like one team has a good day one, but the other team takes day two. So, I'm sure the Pats are looking forward to having the opportunity to rebound vs the Packers Thursday.
Should be fun to watch.