Patriots Training Camp: The Pads Finally Come On
By Cyrus Geller
Yesterday the Patriots finally put the pads on for the first time in training camp. Here is a brief recap…
Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald was at practice, and his biggest takeaways were how good Jabaal Sheard and Joe Thuney looked in pads:
"With the players actually hitting each other today, left guard Joe Thuney was the offensive lineman who stood out the most. He’s got some good strength when locked in with defensive linemen, and he does a nice job of finishing each play.Jabaal Sheard shined more than any defensive player. He dominated Marcus Cannon a couple times, including once in 11-on-11s when he blew up a running play. Rob Ninkovich handled Cannon pretty easily in 1-on-1s."
I can’t help but get extremely excited when I see stuff like this regarding Thuney. The offensive line is the most important part of this team (minus Brady and Gronk), because if they play well and give Brady ample team, he will absolutely destroy opposing defenses.
The Pats have a lot of depth on the inside this year, but it appears Thuney has gotten the early inside track to one of the starting guard jobs. Tre’ Jackson and Shaq Mason are currently sidelined with injuries, as is Jonathan Cooper, so it will be interesting to see who emerges over the next couple of weeks to take that other guard spot.
As for Sheard, hearing him dominate is not surprising whatsoever. Not only because he is going up against Marcus Cannon (who I could beat), but because he was simply superb last year behind Rob Ninkovich and Chandler Jones. Now that Jones is gone, Sheard is going to be counted on to produce on an every-down basis, so hopefully he is up to the challenge.
Also, in case anyone was doubting him (Ben Volin), Tom Brady is still himself out there. Just as competitive as ever.
"Brady’s lone incompletion bounced off a paddle, which caused him to scream something that can’t be repeated here. Brady has now knocked one off a paddle in all three practices."
RIP the NFL. Tommy’s going to obliterate everyone when he comes back.