What To Make Of Padless Practices? 7 Takeaways From 1st Week Of Training Camp
The vast majority of NFL teams won't begin padded practices until Monday, but that isn't stopping us from noticing things around the league in the opening week of training camp. As we get settled in at training camps around the country, there are a handful of items that have stood out to us in the first week of practices. How have the New England Patriots handled their unusual offseason? Which injured players look to be in good shape? Who has impressed among the rookies? Here are our seven takeaways from the first week of training camp: 1. Mike Vrabel And The Patriots Are Operating Business As Usual Henry McKenna: The Seattle Seahawks might have won the Super Bowl, but it felt like the New England Patriots dominated the offseason storylines for better and for worse. Its already a big story if a New England-based team doesnt win a championship. The region is accustomed to winning the big game in every major sports league. But New England has steeped itself in drama. There may have been no bigger offseason NFL storyline than Vrabels scandal. The Patriots also acquired A.J. Brown from the Eagles, a transaction that took months for both sides to complete. That became a top three offseason storyline in the NFL. So there was a lot to discuss in New England. Inwardly, Vrabel addressed the scandal with his players. Outwardly, the Patriots are operating business as usual. Certainly, the coach hasnt changed the way he operates. He welcomed Brown to the team by making an example of the star wide receiver when he made a mistake on the first day of training camp. "First team meeting, he ripped me for not bringing in a catch," Brown said last week. "Early on, as a rookie, I didn't really like that too much. Now I know it comes from a great place. He expects me to make that play, and so do I." When it comes to offseason storylines whether its right or wrong Brown could play a big part in making Vrabels scandal go away. If the Patriots win games and start the season strong, thatll be the focus. If they lose well, the focus might fall on the scandal again. *** 2. Giants Encouraged By Malik Nabers Early Performance Ralph Vacchiano: The Giants are still very cautiously refusing to say whether receiver Malik Nabers will be ready for Week 1. But his performance in the first two days of training camp (with a scheduled off day on Day 3) sure was a very encouraging sign. Just nine months removed from surgery to repair a torn ACL that ruined most of his second NFL season, New Yorks No. 1 receiver not only practiced fully early in camp, he also earned rave reviews. "He definitely has a presence about him," quarterback Jaxson Dart said. "There's an aura that he has on the field that is exhilarating. It makes me happy. Everybodys happy to see him out on the field. And I think for him, he's had a lot of positives." New coach John Harbaugh was a bit more cautious, but added, "He looked good. It was encouraging." The Giants plan is to see how Nabers responds to the early workload and gauge how much, and how quickly, they can increase it. One team source told me they are hopeful hell be ready for the start of the regular season, but arent afraid to delay his return a few weeks if it helps him get to full strength. Nabers' importance cant be overstated, though. Dart has never played a full regular-season game with Nabers, who suffered his knee injury in Week 4 last year, when Dart made his first start. Dart had an impressive rookie season anyway, but Nabers would be the best and most talented receiver hes played with, by far. *** 3. Rodgers-Metcalf Connection Clicking Early Vacchiano: Theres been obvious chemistry between quarterback Aaron Rodgers and wide receiver DK Metcalf early in training camp, as there should be. But thats a big change from last season when the Steelers never seemed to get enough out of that connection. Metcalf had just 59 catches for 850 yards and six touchdowns in 15 games last season far from the elite numbers Pittsburgh expected after trading a second-round pick to get him and signing him to a five-year, $150 million deal. Metcalf had just two 100-yard games and nine games with fewer than 50 yards including a disappointing two-catch, 42-yard performance in the Steelers first-round playoff loss. "[Last season] we were kind of like trying to get used to the dynamic of everything," Metcalf said. "He was in a new place. I was in a new place. I think right now our communication is far beyond where it was last year when we first got to camp. We're just leaps ahead of the communication aspect. And I think it's only going to continue to grow." It helped, Metcalf said, that Rodgers his training camp roommate was more present in the offseason. He attended several OTA practices and took his receivers on a "bonding" trip out West. It also helped that the Steelers acquired wide receiver Michael Pittman in the offseason to give Metcalf another receiver that can take some of the pressure off. Now its up to new coach Mike McCarthy to use all that and find a way to make the connection really work. "He's a matchup problem," McCarthy said. "You'd better get some help (covering) him. We want to move him around a little more. But I was impressed with their timing together in the spring. We just want to continue to grow off of that because DK can change a game." 4. Can Bucs' WR Corps Be Better Without Mike Evans? Greg Auman: The biggest transaction of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offseason was the surprising departure of Mike Evans to the San Francisco 49ers after 12 seasons in Tampa. And somehow, a week into their first training camp without the future Hall of Famer, its possible the Bucs depth can make up for such a significant loss. Chris Godwin, 30, has spent his whole career in Evans shadow, and now fully recovered from a 2024 ankle injury, has a chance to show what he can do leading the room. The real excitement is in the next four receivers all age 24 or younger who will each take on part of the challenge of replacing Evans. That starts with Emeka Egbuka, 23, last years first-round pick who had five touchdowns in his first five NFL games, then hit a wall with only one score the rest of the way. He could be the next in a pipeline of former Ohio State receivers dominating the NFL. Jalen McMillan, 24, missed most of last year recovering from a neck injury, but looks like he did at the end of his rookie season, when he led the NFL with seven touchdown catches in the final five weeks of 2024. Tez Johnson, 24, caught five touchdowns last year as a sixth-round rookie, stepping up amid multiple injuries, and theres excitement surrounding rookie Ted Hurst, 22, a third-round pick from Georgia State whose 6-foot-4 frame could help give the Bucs a red-zone lob threat that Evans was for so long. New Bucs offensive coordinator Zac Robinson their fifth offensive coordinator in five seasons is close friends with former offensive coordinator Liam Coen, and the hope is that Tampa Bays offense and passing game can get back to its peak as a top-five unit under Coen in 2024. Evans was limited by injuries to eight games and three touchdown catches in his final year in Tampa, so the Bucs already had a taste of life without him, and the hope is that five receivers, collectively, can help offset one major offseason loss. *** 5. Carnell Tate Not The Only Young Titans WR To Keep An Eye On Ben Arthur: Second-year wide receiver Elic Ayomanor has been the biggest standout at Titans training camp through the first week, making several plays. The 2025 fourth-round pick made a beautiful leaping grab by the sideline over cornerback Joshua Williams in team drills on Saturday, drawing plenty of cheers from the fans in attendance. Earlier in the day, he had a similarly impressive catch in a 7-on-7 period. Just two days prior, Ayomanor made whats arguably been the biggest highlight of training camp so far with starting cornerback CorDale Flott draped over him, the former Stanford standout jumped and snagged a Cam Ward pass over Flotts head. No. 4 overall pick Carnell Tate is expected to be Tennessees WR1 at some point, and free-agent acquisition WanDale Robinson will be a primary target for Ward, too. But Ayomanor should be a significant factor in the offense as well. Ayomanor led Titans receivers last season with 515 receiving yards. The second-year pro focused on his posture this offseason and trained some with Robinson, work that hasnt gone unnoticed by his teammates. "To me, Elic is a star," veteran Calvin Ridley said. Overall, the Titans boast one of their most talented wide receiver rooms in years, a group that can further Wards development as a franchise quarterback. In addition to young talents like Tate and Ayomanor, they have a 1,000-yard receiver from each of the last two seasons (Robinson in 25, Ridley in 24). Second-year pro Chim Dike, an All-Pro returner, ranked third on the Titans with 423 receiving yards as a rookie. "This is one of the deepest rooms Ive been in," Ridley said of Tennessees wide receivers. "If we do what we gotta do, get on the same page with our quarterback, we can push [this season]." *** 6. Cade Klubnik May Have A Shot To Cut Geno Smiths Jets Reunion Short Vacchiano: Geno Smiths second Jets tenure got off to a rocky start during an offseason that featured several run-ins with police, including a domestic incident that became a viral video. And then he was a bit shaky during the first two light practices of training camp, though he got better as the early days went along. Make no mistake: Smith is entrenched as the Jets' starter for as long as he can keep them somewhat relevant this season. But its still worth keeping one eye over his shoulder, because the most interesting quarterback in camp is rookie Cade Klubnik, their fourth-round pick. Jets general manager Darren Mougey said hes "excited" to see what the rookie can do, and a team source said theyve been "thrilled" with what theyve seen so far. He looked mostly sharp in his first two days, though those were really light practices. If that continues, hes got a "real good chance" to emerge as Smiths primary backup. Its also not crazy to suggest they might give him a shot as a starter later in the season, especially if the season goes awry again. The Jets are a near-lock to draft a quarterback in the first round of the 2027 draft, and not much can change that plan. But late in the season, especially if theyre not miraculously in playoff contention, they still might want to see what theyve got in Klubnik, just in case. *** 7. Jeremiyah Love Getting Comfortable In Cardinals' Scheme Eric D. Williams: Because of positional value and Arizona clearly not considered to be a player away from contending as a rebuilding roster, NFL observers criticized the Cardinals for taking Love at No. 3 overall. But in training camp practices, the Notre Dame product has looked as good as advertised, showing explosive playmaking ability as a runner and pass catcher out of the backfield. However, the Cardinals have a crowded running back room, including free agent pickup Tyler Allgeier and veteran incumbent James Conner. That means Love will have a shared workload as he learns the offense and transitions to a more complex NFL game. Allgeier was listed as the starter in Arizonas unofficial depth chart released for this weeks Hall of Fame game, while Love was No. 2 on the depth chart. "Theres a lot of guys in there," Cardinals new offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett told me. "Any time youve got a great room like that, theyre going to be able to root for each other. We want to use them all, give them all the ball and watch them all grow together." Hackett said to expect diversity in the running game, including outside zone and a downhill running attack.
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