O-line brotherhood keeps developing Patriots training camp

The New England Patriots were back on the practice fields behind Gillette Stadium on Thursday for their second training camp session of the summer. The 90-minute event in shorts and shells was again a lighter one as part of the league’s ramp-up protocols.

To recap the session, please make sure to check out Pats Pulpit beat writer Brian Hines’ Training Camp Notebook. Before we turn our attention to Day 3, however, let’s clean out that notebook to put an official wrap on Wednesday.

Patriots Training Camp Notebook: Day 2

Practice recap | Performances of note | Christian Barmore on his shape | Kendrick Bourne on the receiver competition | Kendrick Bourne on Josh McDaniels | Patriots veterans on Will Campbell | Ja’Lynn Polk injury update | Pats Pulpit Training Camp Guide

Offensive line brotherhood keeps developing: The Patriots put a heavy emphasis on rebuilding their culture in the first offseason under head coach Mike Vrabel, and signing veteran offensive tackle Morgan Moses was a big part of that. Four months after bringing Moses aboard, the brotherhood Moses wants to build up front is starting to develop.

“We’re not going to dawn on the past because it’s a new year,” Moses said after Thursday’s practice. “We have an unbelievably talented room, and we’re growing every day. We have some guys that played a lot of football in that room and the young guys that are willing to learn and eager to learn. I think the change of the culture is the key. ...

“It starts with the foundation. It starts with the camaraderie and the brotherhood. When I first got here, there weren’t a lot of offensive line dinners and things like that. We’ve hung out a couple of times already, and that’s the key — just being able to know each other outside of the building. Coach Vrabel has done a great job of allowing us to get up in team meetings and share our stories. That allows us to come back together, because if you know your brother off the field you’ll definitely love him on the field.”

Whether the new culture will lead to newfound success for the unit after several years of subpar performance will be seen. So far, without full pads, the offensive line has not been able to showcase its potential.

However, Moses is optimistic that the unit will come together nicely — both veterans like himself and the youngsters that are part of the mix.

“I think in our room, we have a great group of guys that are willing to ask questions,” he said. “And when you have veterans like Garrett [Bradbury] and me in there, you’re able to share the knowledge of the game, whatever you need. It makes those guys rise, and it makes you rise with them because they’re coming.

“At the end of the day, that’s what you want: you want a battle in the room. You want a good battle, and that way everybody’s out there getting better every day.”

Morgan Moses not bothered by the rotation: The Patriots entered training camp with the same starting five along the offensive line they used in the spring, including Morgan Moses at right tackle. The veteran offseason acquisition has not been given every starter rep at the spot, however, and at times was subbed off in favor of backup Demontrey Jacobs.

Is Moses concerned about this usage, though? Not at all.

“I don’t know what it is. I don’t ask any questions. I just do what I’m told,” he explained on Thursday.

“I just come in and try to put my best foot forward every day. You know the good thing about where I’m at right now is that I still feel like I can continue to learn. It’s a way different offense than I’ve been in in my previous years, and that’s what keeps me going. Just being able to know that I can come in and keep getting better every day, and the opportunity is there.”

As for the rotation itself — which seemingly stems from a desire to manage Moses’ workload — he sees value in the depth options getting their opportunities alongside the starting offense. As he explained, they need to be ready for high-quality snaps at all time.

“Those guys need reps, too,” the 34-year-old said. “Obviously, in the trenches, things happen. I think last year they had a lot of injuries on the offensive line. It’s good to get everybody those reps. But we’re moving forward and we’re getting what we need. We’re correcting things in the meeting room, and everything is going well.”

Jabrill Peppers happy to have Terrell Williams back: The Patriots’ defensive coordinator missed most of the offseason due to a medical emergency, having to work remotely from his Detroit home for several months. Williams was cleared to return in time for training camp, however, and starting safety Jabrill Peppers was among those thrilled about his comeback and what it means for this entire side of the ball.

“Glad to have his presence, his intensity — cracking jokes, making the meeting room lively. You need that at camp,” Peppers explained.

Mike Vrabel keeping the upper hand: Trash talk is an integral part of the training camp experience in the NFL, and something Jabrill Peppers is very good at. However, he seems to have found his master in his new head coach.

“I keep telling him to take that 5 off. He’s not tough enough,” Peppers said about Vrabel repeatedly wearing a practice jersey with Peppers’ number on it. “But he told me to go check in on the Patriots Hall of Fame, so there’s nothing I could say to come back from that.”

Vrabel 1, Peppers 0.

Kendrick Bourne is impressed by Stefon Diggs’ recovery: Just nine months remove from tearing his ACL, Patriots wideout Stefon Diggs has been a full participant in both practices so far. For teammate Kendrick Bourne, that is no small feat.

“It’s freaking impressive,” Bourne said. “From my experience, I wasn’t even close to that. It’s an honor to see.”

Bourne is no stranger to the process Diggs is going through. He tore his ACL in October 2023, roughly a year before his now-teammate went down. Unlike Diggs, however, Bourne was not cleared for training camp and ultimately had to wait until Week 5 of the regular season to make his comeback.

Diggs being way ahead of that timeline has Bourne thinking big — Comeback Player of the Year big.

“I’ve been talking about Adrian Peterson, and when he came back from his ACL in the past and he was just explosive,” he said. “And I just tease him, like, ‘Hey man, you’re looking good. You’re looking like you’re going to have an AP kind of year.’ He’d be laughing and joking, but he’s worked hard. You can see the results in that.”

The times they are a-changin’? One of the few lowlights of Thursday’s practice came when Drake Maye and rookie Jared Wilson fumbled a center-quarterback exchange. Under previous regimes, a play like that — putting the ball at risk of being lost via turnover — might have caused the players involved, or even the entire unit, to go on a penalty lap. Nothing like that happened on Thursday.

What’s next: The Patriots will be back on the practice field on Friday at 10 a.m. ET, with head coach Mike Vrabel speaking to the media at 9:45. Make sure to follow Pats Pulpit (@patspulpit) as well as our very own Brian Hines (@iambrianhines) and Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) for updates.

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