Return to the Razor: Patriots Training Camp Observations from Inside Gillette Stadium

The New England Patriots proudly welcomed their fans back to the confines of Gillette Stadium for an in-stadium training camp practice on Friday evening.

It was the team’s ninth organized practice of 2021 training camp. The event was open to season-ticket holders, members on the waiting list, and residents of Foxboro, Massachusetts. The team took the field wearing neither shells, nor pads. Despite the lack of contact, there was still plenty of action on the field.

Here are some of the evening’s highlights from a beautiful summer evening at Gillette Stadium.

Roll Call

In addition to the PUP/NFI placements, the following Patriots players were also out of action on Friday evening: DL Christian Barmore, WR Devin Ross, CB D'Angelo Ross, K Nick Folk, RB Brandon Bolden, LB Raekwon McMillan, DT Akeem Spence, S Adrian Colbert and OL Ted Karras

Once again, QB Jarrett Stidham, CB Stephon Gilmore, TE Dalton Keene, LB Chase Winovich, DT Byron Cowart and LB Terez Hall remain ineligible to practice, as they have been placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.

Rookies Joshuah Bledsoe (S) and Cameron McGrone (LB) remain on the non-football-injury (NFI) list.

TE Devin Asiasi remains absent, after reportedly having tested for COVID-19 last week.

After missing practice on Thursday, safety Cody Davis was back in action.

Split-Squad, at Slow Pace

The Patriots participated in what can best be described as simulated game action at a glacial pace.

Wearing white jerseys, quarterback Cam Newton led his squad consisting of Sony Michel, James White, Tyler Gaffney, Nelson Agholor, Jakobi Meyers, N’Keal Harry, Gunner Olszewski, Marvin Hall, Hunter Henry, Matt LaCosse and Jakob Johnson. Devin McCourty and Matthew Slater were captains for Team White.

Wearing blue jerseys, rookie Mac Jones was joined on his team by Damien Harris, Rhamondre Stevenson, J.J. Taylor, Kendrick Bourne, Tre Nixon, Isaiah Zuber, Kristian Wilkerson, Jonnu Smith, Troy Fumagalli and David Wells. David Andrews, Ja'Whaun Bentley, and Lawrence Guy were captains for Team Blue.

For the Quinn

As expected, the tepid pace of Friday evening’s non-competitive walkthrough meant an exhibition of sorts for the Patriots specialists.

With Nick Folk out of action for the night, undrafted rookie Quinn Nordin had the chance to showcase his powerful leg, once compared to a ‘cannon’ by special teams captain Matthew Slater.

The rookie went 10-for-10 on kicks, from 35, 34, 40, 29, 22, 34, 48 and 35-yards respectively; with his most impressive coming from 57-yards. Nordin closed the night by nailing a 55-yarder.

At one point, Slater called a timeout in a futile attempt to ice Nordin. Needless to say, it did not work.

Team White highlights

While ‘highlights’ might be a bit of a stretch, Cam Newton did lead his team on a couple of simulated drives. In the first session, the Pats’ incumbent led a two-minute drill with a pair of impressive throws to Jakobi Meyers and Gunner Olszewski.

As the first session was coming to a close, Newton led his offense down to the 11, before being intercepted by J.C. Jackson with a second left.

Team Blue Highlights

Mac Jones continued to find his comfort in the Pats offense. The Pats rookie quarterback hit Jonnu Smith up the seam for the touchdown in the waning moments of the first session.

Kraft Thanks the Foxboro Faithful

During a break in the action, team owner Robert Kraft addressed the crowd at Gillette Stadium. Kraft welcomed fans back, thanking them for their loyalty and calling them the ‘backbone’ of the team.

Prior to Friday evening, it had been 580 days since the Patriots had hosted fans within the confines of their home stadium.

The Patriots will have the day off on Saturday, before returning to the practice fields adjacent to Gillette Stadium on Sunday afternoon (August 8) for their tenth team practice of 2021 training camp.