The takeaway food of the first five days of the Patriotes camp

FOXBORO – As there is no Patriots training camp on Tuesday, let's take the notebook out and recall some of the dishes we've had during the first five training sessions. summer …

* Surprise, surprise. Five days later, the defense seems to be ahead of the offensive. Can you feel the radiant sarcasm of your screen? It is not unusual for the defense to have an advantage at this time of year, but it is worth noting. Why? The Patriots have a new de facto coordinator (but not in title) in Brian Flores. They have a new consultant for the coaching staff, Bret Bielema, who has helped mainly on the defensive side of things. Malcolm Butler is gone. There is a change here. Still, the Patriots' defense has performed well, especially at the goal line with players like Malcom Brown, Trey Flowers and Elandon Roberts helping to make stops. In high school, Stephon Gilmore was arguably the best player – on either side of the ball – in the camp. Even younger players like Duke Dawson, JC Jackson and Ja & Whaun Bentley seemed to belong. If, under Flores, the Patriots are able to think less and play faster, what some players thought they could do, it could contribute to the positive gains they seem to have made at the beginning of the camp.

* Is there a concerted effort for the construction of chemistry? After skipping the voluntary portion of spring training, Tom Brady did everything possible to establish rapport with unnamed players Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski. We have seen him take rehearsals with Jordan Matthews, and he has not hesitated to try to incorporate players like Cordarrelle Patterson and Sony Michel into the pass game during periods of time. team. This contrasts with the fact that Edelman and Gronkowski had a relatively calm first five days of camp (apart from a strong Day 1 of the tight end All-Pro), and it seems that Brady try to see what he has in some of his new teammates.

* The attrition at the receiver's position is real. This is worth a look. Malcolm Mitchell has not yet practiced and is still day-to-day, according to Bill Belichick. Kenny Britt remains on the list physically unable to perform, but there is a bit of optimism he will be ready to go soon. Jordan Matthews suffered from what was reported as a hamstring injury that hit him during training over the weekend. Matthew Slater also stays at the PUP. Add it all, and it's not surprising that the Patriots are kicking a player like Eric Decker. Even if they bring in a receiver that's not a long-term fix, a catcher who understands the system – Decker spent time with Josh McDaniels in Denver – would be helpful. At the moment, the Patriots are counting on Edelman, Hogan, Patterson and Phillip Dorsett to take on a considerable workload. Riley McCarron, like Braxton Berrios, Devin Lucien and newcomer Paul Turner, can be a big hit. But if one of these players breaks down, the math becomes even more hairy. Less body means more representatives among those available, which is not always a good thing. More work, more heat, can potentially lead to excessive wear.

* Trent Brown looks like the real deal. Let's take the example by saying that with only two days of padded practice in the books, we should not get carried away by all we've seen of the big humans in the trenches. But Brown seems to have athleticism quite rare for a player of his size (6 feet 8 inches 380). When the Patriots lost Nate Solder, I thought they might miss one of the aspects of the Solder game that had gone unnoticed, namely its ability to move in space and time. to make moving blocks that could be difficult for less athletic tackles. Watch Brown, who surpasses Solder by 55 pounds, do some of the things that he did during the weekend – move on the screens, get to the outside to carry block on stretched runs – myself suggests that the Patriots might have a special talent on their hands. Comments from Kyle Shanahan and Von Miller about Brown now make a little more sense after seeing Brown in person.

* Joe Thuney is still stapled from the left guard. The Patriots may have a first-world problem on their hands at the front. If Brown is a legitimate left tackle. . . so what? They wrote Isaiah Wynn, who has the flexibility to play guard and tackle in the first round. They have Joe Thuney back in good health for a third season after playing just about every slap in his first two. So who is the strange man? Wynn would he really be the sixth offensive lineman on the team after being drafted 23rd?