We'll get our first look at the Patriots at Wednesday's OTA session
FOXBORO -- Football is back in New England. After a slight delay, we'll get our first look at the 2023 Patriots on Wednesday when team will hold its first OTA session open to the media.
That first media-friendly session was supposed to happen last week, but New England was stripped a pair of OTA sessions (on May 25 and 30) for violating the NFL's offseason rules. Bill Belichick is set to chat with reporters at 11 a.m., though chances are he won't say much about that infraction or Joe Judge's role in losing a pair of practice sessions.
The Patriots actually started Organized Team Activities last Monday, putting in some early work for the 2023 season. Now that these sessions are open to the media, all eyes will be on the New England offense with Bill O'Brien now in charge of running that side of the operation.
How will Mac Jones look to start his third season with his third different offensive coordinator? This is a huge year for the quarterback as he looks to move on from last season's struggles and produce the same kind of promise from his rookie season. And for good measure, we'll see how Bailey Zappe looks -- you know, just in case.
The Patriots added JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mike Gesicki to their offensive arsenal, and it will be interesting to see how O'Brien works them into the system. We'll also see if Kendrick Bourne has a bigger role after his playing time was diminished last season, and if Tyquan Thornton is ready to break out in his second NFL season.
While questions remain about how good (or how bad) the New England offense can be, there are high hopes that the defense will be one of the best in the NFL. Wednesday will be the first look at rookie corner Christian Gonzalez, who fell to the Patriots at the 17th overall pick. He could be a day one starter for New England opposite Jack Jones, with Jalen Mills and Jonathan Jones rounding out the cornerback group.
Patriots players will talk with reporters after Wednesday's practice. New England's offseason program will run through June 16, with the next session open to the media on June 6. Sessions on June 12-14 with also be open to the media, with training camp kicking off sometime in late July.
