Patriots preseason: Thuney, Mitchell lead top five rookies so far

2. Malcolm Mitchell

That sure was a gruesome sight when Mitchell caught an out route and then messed up his elbow as he was being dragged down. However, the Patriots received good injury news when ESPN’s Adam Caplan reported that Mitchell’s MRI on the injured left elbow came back clean. Similar to Matthew Slater’s 2009 elbow injury, Mitchell is expected to miss something in the neighborhood of four weeks, a time frame which could have him back for Week 1 (but after missing valuable practice time with Jimmy G).

Another chapter in Malcolm Mitchell’s advocacy for children’s literacy

Before exiting with the injury, Mitchell had caught four passes for 55 yards, including a nice 24-yard grab in which Mitchell displayed awareness of the sideline. He appears to have solid fundamentals, route running skills and soft hands, all traits that combine nicely with a 6-foot frame and lengthy wingspan.

Next: 1. Joe Thuney