Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Scho on Foxboro: Patriots Training Camp Analysis with Mark Schofield - 8/21/2020

Episode Date: August 21, 2020

While the competition at quarterback is receiving the majority of the attention during New England Patriots Training Camp, there is a lot more to look for in Foxboro. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Mark Schofield of TouchdownWire to evaluate some of the Patriots players that are starting to emerge as impact players. The duo also discuss how an offseason devoid of preseason games and joint practices poses a challenge to the Patriots coaching staff when it comes to evaluating talent. Lastly, Mark offers his insight on how Jarrett Stidham’s health may impact tHe quarterback battle between he and Cam Newton. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans, you are now locked in to the Locked On Patriots Podcast. I'm going to show you how to make a beautiful and beautiful flower. I'm going to use a small flower pot. I'm going to use a small pot Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. Thank football. It's Friday here on the Locked On Patriots podcast, your daily home for news notes and analysis

infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots. My name is Mike DeBate, your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which of course is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And folks, your team every day means your questions, your comments, your feedback, always welcomed, strongly encouraged. And if I might add, greatly appreciated.

Share that feedback anytime by reaching out to me Feedback. Always welcomed. Strongly encouraged. And if I might add, greatly appreciated. Share that feedback anytime by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. And while you're out there giving that how you doing weekend nod to the Twitterverse, please be sure to follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Patriots fans, your beloved footballers in Foxborough are in full swing when it comes to training camp. The pads are on, and there is certainly no shortage of action. Another thing that there's no shortage of when it comes to Patriots training camp is storylines. And of course, many of those storylines surround the quarterback position. I'll tell you what, we'll come back to that one in a minute. But the evaluation of who will end up being the first

starting quarterback in the post-Tom Brady era here in New England is not the only storyline worth keeping an eye on in Foxborough. Already this week, we've seen a number of players on this roster emerging into what could end up being impact players. And before you say, it's only been a week, all they're doing is playing on the practice fields, how can you evaluate talent like that? Well, folks, I hate to break it to you, but that's the way the New England Patriots and their coaching staff are going to have to evaluate talent this year. It will be a challenge without preseason games, joint practices, or any type of viable competition against which these players have to be measured.

Now, that's going to be a challenge for all 32 NFL teams. But if there is one thing that recent NFL history has taught us, it's that Bill Belichick and his coaching staff are usually as well or better prepared than anyone else in the league for virtually any contingency. But 2020 is going to test that to the limits. And keep in mind that there's only so much that practice statistics can tell us. There are individual intricacies, nuances if you will, that allow coaching staffs to be able to evaluate whether this player would make a solid NFLer or most importantly a solid Newer or, most importantly, a solid New England Patriot.

And when you need to take a deeper dive into those intricacies, you turn to the lord of the X's and O's, the man I love to call the excellence of execution. That's right, folks. Joining me here today on the hot seat is my predecessor here on the Lockdown Patriots podcast, my good friend Mark Schofield. And Mark and I will be taking a deep dive into those intricacies. Exactly what will coaching staffs be looking for to evaluate not only their own talent,

but also talent across the league? Don't forget, preseason is also a great time to scout your competition. No NFL team will have that this year, so how will the Patriots account for that? We'll also discuss who's caught Mark's sharp eye when it comes to standouts and potential impact players on this year's Patriots roster. And last but certainly not

least, folks, you know I love calling Mark the quarterback whisperer, and we will be talking quarterbacks, starting with Mark's definition of exactly what a quarterback competition actually is. I'll give you a little hint on that one, folks. It's not about who made a nice throw during 11-on-11s or who threw the most or least interceptions. Again, folks, intricacies, and Mark is the best at breaking those down. You know we'll be discussing Cam Newton, but we'll also be discussing Jarrett Stidham, who was in the spotlight on Friday morning. And that's where we'll begin with Friday's news and notes before I welcome Mark into the hot seat and discuss all things Patriots

training camp. And of course, as they had each and every day this week, the New England Patriots took to the practice fields adjacent to Gillette Stadium. Only lighter pads and shorts were worn on Friday. It's a little different from just shells, which are typically just helmets and jerseys. And of course, full pads are reserved for the more intense practices. So Bill Belichick chose for three days of full padded practice this week, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and two days of light shoulder pads or shorts or shells on Wednesday and Friday. And of course, most of us here in Patriots Nation were looking forward to another day of quarterback competition.

But starting early Friday morning, news started to emerge about Patriots quarterback Jarrett Stidham and a possible injury to his leg, or so we thought at the time. One of the first to report this very early on Friday morning was Nick Stevens, who most of you know as Fitzy from the Greg Hill Show on WEI. And Nick had reported that he had been hearing rumblings around the team that Jarrett had been suffering from a lower body injury, and that it was possible he might even miss some practice time.

Well, that story gained a little more traction later on Friday morning when Ian Rappaport of the NFL Network, in conjunction with Mike Giardi, also of the NFL Network, confirmed that Jarrett was indeed dealing with a leg injury, and at the time, they were reporting that he was unlikely to practice on Friday and might be missing some practices down the line. However, very shortly after this report broke, the media contingent that has been present at Gillette Stadium all week long to cover the action on the field reported that Jarrett was indeed walking onto the practice fields holding his helmet, dressed, and looked ready to throw. That was followed by numerous reporter videos on social media showing Jarrett Stidham throwing the football. So at the start of Friday's practice,

it didn't look like Jarrett would be limited at all, and much of the media contingent in attendance at Gillette indicated that at least early on, Jarrett looked to be a full go. But not so fast. There's more, folks. Once it became obvious that Jarrett would be limited in practice, meaning that he wouldn't be participating in the organized portion of team activities on Friday, Mike Giardi added to his report by saying that per his source, Jarrett Stidham's injury was not to his leg but rather to his hip,

and that it would reportedly be several weeks before he was back to 100%. So if we're keeping a tally sheet here, that would mean that Cam Newton and of course Brian Hoyer would receive the entirety of the quarterback snaps, and for those of you that were hoping for a quarterback competition, that would not be good news. So that pretty much sums it up, doesn't it? Not quite. Just when you thought you were out, they pull you back in. The Boston Globe's Jim McBride went on to report that

Stidham had indeed spent part of Thursday night at Mass General Hospital where tests on a lower body injury came back negative. This was later confirmed by Adam Schefter of ESPN and seemed to indicate that a glimmer of hope still existed for Stidham's chances of competing for the starting job. But it still looked like that Jarrett was destined to miss at least the foreseeable future when it came to practices. Until offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels addressed the media shortly after noontime.

And when Josh was asked about Stidham's condition, he responded by saying, Coach Belichick left him out today, meaning Friday, but I'm pretty sure he'll be out there ready to roll next time. And if you run that through Patriots Google Translate, that essentially means that Stidham should be ready to go for his next practice, which is scheduled to take place on Sunday. So folks, are you confused? If you are, you're definitely not alone. At this point, it's way too early to speculate as to what this injury may mean for Jarrett

Stidham, what it may mean for Cam Newton, and most importantly, what it ultimately means for a quarterback competition that was brewing in Foxborough all week long. And at the time we're recording this podcast, folks, I regret to inform you that I don't have a concrete answer on what it means for any of these parties involved, whether it be Jarrett Stidham, Cam Newton, Brian Hoyer, don't forget, he's affected by all this as well, or the Patriots offensive coaching staff. But I will say this, whether it be Nick Stephens, Ian Rappaport, Mike Giardi, Jim McBride, or Adam Schefter, I can assure you that the names of the gentlemen that I just read off are

among the most respected and accurate journalists in sports media. If they're reporting something, I'm willing to bet that there's substance behind it. Whether it be positive on Jarrett's injury or negative, I always like to fall back on my Aristotle quote, which is virtue lies in the middle. And I think it's a safe bet that over the weekend, we'll start to learn a little bit more about Jarrett's injury and what it will mean for weekend practices and, of course, the week ahead. So in that light, you will absolutely want to make sure

that you do not miss Monday's episode of Locked On Patriots. And of course, I sincerely hope that you hang around for Tuesday through Friday's episode as well, because we've got an exciting week planned for you. But this week's not over yet, folks, because the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be, will be joining me right here on the hot seat in just a moment. No, folks, for all you wrestling fans out there, Brett the Hitman Hart will not be joining me on the pod today. I'm talking about the football and quarterback equivalent of the best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be. And that is USA Today Touchdown Wire's very own Mark Schofield. And for the benefit of all of us

listening today, myself included, Mark will provide the definitive definition on a quarterback competition. We'll discuss how Jared Stidham's injury could affect that competition and what it means for Cam Newton. Last but certainly not least, we'll talk about some of the evaluation of talent that's going on in Foxborough right now and who's emerging as a potential impact player. Here's a little hint on that one from my perspective. You think I might be mentioning Gunner? You're damn right I'm mentioning Gunner.

And I'll tell you why he is far from being simply a punchline when it comes to my favorite Spaceballs meme, this kid's doing everything he can to earn a spot. So sit tight, folks, and action-packed agenda, and be prepared to absorb the wisdom and counsel of Mark Schofield when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. But first, you've often heard the phrase, folks, often imitated, but never duplicated. And of course, that's very true of the Locked On Podcast Network, but you know what else it's true of? Protein bars.

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Go to BiltBar.com and use the promo code LOCKEDON to get $10 off your next order. Do not delay. Make Bilt Bar your go-to protein bar today. Use promo code LOCKEDON for $10 off at BuiltBar.com. Patriots fans, training camp speculation for fans and media alike can be a hard habit

to break. It's hard to shall we say, look away. And I know my guests would agree because today on Locked on patriots we will be talking some of the storylines that will carry you into your weekend advantages disadvantages and of course quarterbacks and that means bringing in the best there is the best there was and the best there ever will be the excellence of execution the host emeritus here at locked on patriots an amazing writer and analyst

for platforms such as Inside the Pylon, Big Blue View, Bleeding Green Nation, Pat's Pulpit, and USA Today's Touchdown Wire. That's just to name a few. His podcast, The Scosho, continues to be appointment listening for Patriots fans. That's right, folks. You know it, and you'll love it. Today, we bless the reins and welcome back my predecessor, my mentor, and my dear friend, Mark Schofield. Mark, thank you for joining me today. Welcome

back home. Mike, thanks for having me. It's always good to be back with you. And I love the Chicago lyrics that you worked in there. Obviously, you know, if I'm a total fan, I'm a Chicago fan. Seen both bands in concert. Chicago is a very fun show. But yeah, it's great to be back here. Great to be with you. Excited to talk to some patriots and some QBs today. Absolutely. You know, Mark, I couldn't resist the Chicago references.

You know, first of all, the Toto poster is permanently affixed to the wall. It will always remain there. I bless the reins in your honor each and every day, my friend. But Chicago is a band that's near and dear to my heart. It's my mom and dad's favorite band. Took me to see my first Chicago concert in 1993 at the ripe old age of 13. And I inherited that love as well. I continue to be a fan of that band. I wish I could have seen the original lineup with Terry Kath and Peter Cetera. But, you know, the lineup that I saw that day was strong. And Chicago has always been one of my favorites. And I was happy to see you reference them in a few of your tweets recently.

So I had to throw that in today. But I had to give that reverence to one of my favorite bands as well. But, you know, my friend, the news of the day in Patriots Nation is training camp, specifically quarterbacks. And because the day started off with some quarterback news that might be significant, and then again it might not be, I figured we'd start there. And Ian Rappaport and Mike Giardi of the NFL Network reported earlier this morning that Jarrett Stidham had been nursing a leg injury, that the Patriots would be proceeding with caution when determining his practice participation. They indicated that he was unlikely to be on the field today. Well, Jarrett wasn't only out there, but he didn't appear to be limited too much at

first. They did hold him out of 11-on-11 drills, but those in attendance were reporting that Jarrett was throwing the ball. He looked affable. He looked excited to be out there, and he looked pretty good throwing the ball. Now, Adam Schefter recently tweeted out at the end of practice that Jarrett's test that he had on his leg this morning for a precautionary measure did indeed come back negative, but the Patriots still limited him. So in a lot of ways, I don't know if this is going to be a much ado about nothing already. The Twitter mob has got the pitchforks out. They're ready to condemn the earlier reports. But we both know that

there's probably virtue lying in the middle, as Aristotle always says. There probably is some hampering of Jarrett Stidham as a result of this, but it's probably not a debilitating injury. And it should be noted that Friday's practice was unpadded, meaning that the tempo, the physicality greatly reduced. So, Mark, you're the quarterback whisperer. And when it comes to quarterback mechanics, as the great Robert De Niro says, you see things. You see some things out there. You see a little bit.

You know, a little bit of things. First, what has been your assessment of Jarrett Stidham so far? And do you think an ailment like this might hinder his chances of competing for the starting job? I mean, it honestly depends on what the exact situation is. And as you've said, look, we've heard varying reports about what's going on with Jared Stidham, what's going on with the lower body. I've heard groin, I've heard hamstring.

You know, as with any sort of Patriots injury, it's hard to get a full read on exactly what's happening. Now, depending on what kind of ailment it is and the severity thereof, you can see different problems show up for a quarterback. If it's hamstring, you know, mobility will be an issue. Throw power, depending on which leg it is, will be an issue. You know, if you've got a right-handed quarterback with a right hamstring injury, that's going to impact their ability to drive off that leg. You know, if you've got a left hamstring injury to a right-handed quarterback, you know, you won't see throw power diminish too much, but you can see accuracy diminish because when you finish that throw, driving off the right leg and finishing through the front foot, if you're not comfortable sort of putting your full weight on the weight transfer on that front leg, it's going to impact

your release point, which gets to the accuracy part of the throwing equation. So that's how a hamstring injury in either leg could impact a quarterback like Jared Stenum. If it's groin, obviously mobility is an issue. Obviously that weight transfer will be an issue to get to both mobility and throw power so that's some of the things we can see in in watching Stidham I'll be honest I haven't seen much that would make me think that there was a severe injury to the lower body because I haven't seen much in terms of an impact on his lower body mechanics, again, in the limited ability we have to sort of view practices right now. You know, a lot of people will probably point to the interceptions that he's thrown. Jeff Howell, among others who are at training camp, have pointed out over the past

couple of days the number of interceptions that he's thrown. I want to caution people. When it comes to training camp and interceptions there's always this tendency to sort of over value interceptions in training camp to the detriment of people that either follow and or cover teams two years ago we heard that Patrick Mahomes was throwing interception after interception in training camp and part of that was because he's trying to figure out what he can and can't get away with, you know, what kind of windows he can challenge and what kind of windows you can't

challenge. That's what training camp is for. And so some of these situations where Jared throws an interception, it might be a similar situation where he's testing what he can do and what he can't do, because you want to figure that out now, not in week one. And so, you know, if people want to read into these interceptions of injury or a lack of ability to play the position, don't go too far down that road because you're probably overstating what's

happening in camp. So, you know, can the injury be something that hinders his ability to win this job? That's going to come down to how quickly he can get back and take full reps and practice. A lot of that's made of, yeah. I mean, a lot of people know that that's great insight.

The split of, of reps, the reps are gold right now because you won't have preseason games and every action, every chance you get to put something on film in front of the coaches is so valuable. And if he misses out on those, that will be what hinders him from winning this job. I agree with you. And I'm so glad that you mentioned the interceptions because as I'm sure it has with you, with me,

with anyone that reports even on the periphery or directly and being in direct contact with the Patriots has seen, people are using the interceptions as an excuse to just completely take Jarrett out of the equation and look I'm not going to tip my hand either way and saying that oh this should be absolutely Cam Newton's job it should be Jarrett's job I've gone on record several times and saying that if these guys are both playing to the best of their ability I think it's Cam's job to lose I think he wins that competition but I'm not the one making that decision simply Simply my opinion. But when it comes to the interceptions, I'm glad that you made that argument and let people see that interceptions in training camp are selective

in a lot of ways and in a lot of ways they're by design. Bill Belichick alluded to that on his press conference this morning. He was asked directly about some of the struggles that they've seen with quarterbacks throwing interceptions and it really wasn't very transparent actually it was very transparent that they were talking mostly about Jarrett Stidham and his struggles particularly yesterday on Thursday in camp throwing a few and Belichick basically said look some of it's by design some of it's not some of it is designed as a learning tool for the quarterback some of it's by design, some of it's not. Some of it is designed as a learning tool for the quarterback. Some of it is a mistake by the quarterback. And they learn from that. It's about the body of work. It's about all of what they bring to the table. So I'm glad that you mentioned that. And I'm glad that you made that distinction because that's something I see

an awful lot of in people getting on Stidham and saying, oh, he's just an interception machine, threw a pick six last year against the Jets in his only meaningful snap. That's what we're getting with him. Why even bother? There's more to look at when it comes to the quarterback position. And that does lead me quite nicely into my next question for you, my friend, and that is there is another quarterback in this competition. Obviously, I'm talking about Cam Newton. Cam seems to be looking more comfortable in this offense day by day. He's more accurate in his throws. He seems to be looking more comfortable in this offense day by day. He's more accurate in his throws. He seems to be looking less and less at the offensive coaching staff when running plays. That's a good sign that he's catching on to the playbook and really

acclimating himself into the Patriots offense. But if Jarrett continues to play through these injuries, to me, that's also a sign that Jarrett himself intends to fight for this position, meaning that the competition is on. And Mark, we hear and see the reporting of stats, and you alluded to this earlier, the work in 11-on-11s and 7-on-7s, the interception ratios, but there's a lot more to just numbers when it comes to a quarterback competition. And again, like I said, Bill alluded to this too during this morning's press conference, saying that evaluating performance is about progression. If you will, my friend, take us through a scout's perspective, even a coach's perspective, of what these guys are looking for in a quarterback competition that's not just dollars and cents, so to speak.

It's not just about how many interceptions this guy threw or how many completions he had in 11-on-11 drills. Specifically in mechanics, what are they looking for that sets the starter out from the rest? Well, let's sort of frame it this way, Mike. The job of the coaching staff, and when we're talking about quarterbacks, the offensive coaching staff, is to put the 11 players on the field in the best position to be successful on snap-to-snap, drive-to-drive, drive, game to game basis.

But that sort of, they lose the ability to do what they can when that play clock starts counting down. And when the quarterback breaks the huddle and brings the team to the line of scrimmage. At some point, the quarterback has to sink and swim on their own. It's like, you know, to use real world examples, teaching a child to ride a bike, teaching a child to swim, you know, you can only do so much. And at some point you have to step back and, you know, see them ride the bike or fall, see them sink or swim in the pool. You know, you have to sort of let them learn on their own and let them handle the responsibility. And that's what the court, the coaches are going to be looking for from both of these guys,

because they're going to need somebody that when they get to the line of scrimmage and they see a look and then the defense changes it was a seven on seven drill and Newton was in the game Devin McCourty on the other side of the ball called out an adjustment in response to what he was seeing from the offense and from the way Phil told it it was like McCourty knew exactly what was coming and at that moment as you sort of alluded to Mike Newton turned to the offensive coaches turned to the quarterback coach yet Jed Frisch, like, what do I do now? And Frisch was like, look, man, it's your show. You've got to do this. And that's what they're looking for. They're looking for the instances on whichever guy is going to win this job is going to be the guy that minimizes those moments. It's going to be the guy that knows this offense and knows that, okay, this is what the defense wants to do. All right, here's what we do in response here are the checks

and the calls that I can make because this is an offense predicated on identifying mismatches pre-snap and exploiting them post-snap it's the way it has been with Tom Brady is the way I expect it to be with either Jarrett Stidham or Cam Newton and so the one that wins this job might not be the guy that throws the best for the best numbers in camp it might not be the guy that has the gaudy numbers in seven on seven or 11 on 11 it's going to be the guy that masters this playbook because that's the difference between a good team and a good offense and a great offense the great offenses are the ones that can exploit the defense no matter what the defense puts in front of them and i want to i do want to say one more thing about seven-on-seven.

Seven-on-seven is easy. Seven-on-seven is nothing for a quarterback. I'll give you a real-world example. You know who was great at seven-on-seven? Me. I was fantastic there in seven-on-seven. Why? Because you could see everything.

Now when the pressure comes in 11-on-11, that's when I would crumble as a quarterback. And so when people say, oh, you know, quarterback so-and-so was great in seven on seven, you should be. That's the sterilized environment of football. So don't read too much into seven on seven stats as well. But in terms of who wins this job, it's the guy that masters this playbook, I think, is going to win this job. I'm so glad that you mentioned that in terms of the prowess of being able to master a playbook being one of the most important things about being quarterback of the New England Patriots. We're coming off of 20 years of one of the best in the business to ever do it in Tom Brady.

And I believe that the quarterbacks they have in the room, not only Cam Newton, but also Jarrett, even Brian Hoyer, to a certain extent, are very adept at being able to do that. It's going to be who can lead this team in the most competent and the most efficient way that's going to be the one that wins the job. And that's really the way Bill Belichick does business. He doesn't worry about stats. He doesn't worry about the gaudy numbers. Like you said, he's looking for the right fit and the right guy to be able to lead his team. I'm also very, very glad that you mentioned yourself, by the way, because I get a chance to throw in the movie line that I always love to throw in

when you come on and saying, don't sell yourself short. You're a tremendous slouch, Mark. The fact that you were able to do so well on seven on sevens is something that you should be proud of. And again, you know, I love throwing in my dad jokes and my movie quotes earlier this week when I had Steve Balistrieri on the show, we were talking about Alex Ellis. And, of course, I couldn't resist. I threw some diehard references in.

And, you know, Bill, Bobby, I'm your white knight, you know. So I love doing that. You know that. But, no, in all honesty, the topic at hand was indeed the quarterback competition and what coaching staffs look for. And I'm so glad that you set the record straight on that because a lot of times we can, even members of the media, can get lost in a great play or some great statistics during training camp. It's the little things, the intricacies that are actually going to win guys spots on this roster. And that does lead us into what will be segment two here on locked on Patriots today,

my friends. And even though quarterbacks is the topic at hand in Mark's wheelhouse, there's also a lot more to look for in Foxborough during this training camp. And in just a moment, Mark Schofield and I will discuss some of the players that are starting to emerge as impact players and how an offseason devoid of preseason games and joint practices can pose a challenge to the Patriots coaching

staff when it comes to evaluating talent. All this and at least one more total reference when the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. Patriots fans, we close the week in style here on the pod by welcoming home my friend and predecessor Mark Schofield. And Mark, the quarterbacks get the lion's share of the press during the training camp. We close the week in style here on the pod by welcoming home my friend and predecessor, Mark Schofield. And Mark, the quarterbacks get the lion's share of the press during the training camp. We talked a little bit about the statistical reporting that goes on during training camp earlier. And in New England, especially this year, it's understandable.

There's a lot of questions surrounding the quarterback position. First year in the post-Brady era, exciting quarterback like Cam Newton in town, a young, hungry quarterback like Jarrett Stidham vying for it. There's some good storylines there, but there have been many players that have made an impression on this Patriots coaching staff so far. And in a moment, folks, Mark and I will discuss some of these players and the proverbial heads they're turning in Foxborough. But first, Bud, this is an offseason like we haven't seen before, in my lifetime certainly, and yours as well. And no joint practices, no preseason games.

That makes it a challenge for any coaching staff to evaluate talent, not just in their own locker room, but also around the league. The preseason can be a very valuable scouting tool. We know that. Bill uses it as well as anyone in the league. Using your attention to detail, my friend, I was hoping that you could take our listeners through a brief overview of exactly what the omission of this preseason competition that we usually see year after year might mean for the team's preparedness this year, especially in Foxborough. Yeah, and it's one of the more fascinating things to think about, the sort of real-world

implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on the sport that we cover. And there's no replication. There's nothing you can do as a coach and staff to replicate the feelings, the emotions, the nerves, and everything that goes into lining up across from somebody wearing a different uniform. You know, you can replicate that as best as you can in practice, in 11-on-11, in team drills, goal line situations. And yes, you know, you can build up over the course of a training camp, you know, an almost, you know, fabricated animosity for the guys on the other side of the ball on your team. You know, you want to win those goal line situations against them.

You want to win those 11-on-11 team situations against them. But it gets taken up to a different level when you go against another team in a joint practice, when you go against another team in a training camp game, a preseason game, because there is that sort of element of nerves, that element of excitement, bottling that up, how you handle and manage those stress situations. That is the closest you can get to replicating what you will need to see from these players down in and down out once the regular season begins. And without the ability to do that,

you miss out on an important component of the evaluation process. A wise man, Matt Waldman, who I know, work with and love, wrote once that if you deny emotion, you deny a big part of this game. And emotion and how players respond to those moments is critical because you hear, you know, you hear about the phrase, you know, the practice player, right? The guy that looks great in practice, but can't put it together once the lights come on you know if you're that type of player you know how can you truly evaluate that player when you don't have those moments to replicate you know you might be convinced that this player is going to be able to step up

but then they won't be able to and if you've given that player a roster spot a starter position you know that might cost you once these games begin. And so it's going to come down to how well these coaching staffs and evaluation departments trust their eyes, trust what they're doing, trust what they're seeing in the midst of practices. And the teams that have the most success this year are going to be the teams that have gotten the most out of this time that have used this practice time wisely that have worked in concert with the coaches on the other

side of the ball to make sure they get a chance to stress players in different situations whether it's we want to see how newton instead of handle a blitz package all right in this session of team drills throw all your blitzes out of because we really need to get that on film you know how the teams structure their practices and handle their practices going to be so important for the teams this year it's critically important and it's interesting because when you hear Belichick talk this offseason and this training camp period he references the college game a ton and I think that's important to keep in mind. You know, college teams don't have joint practices. They don't have preseason games.

The first time they line up from somebody across from them wearing a different uniform, it's week one. And so that often leads to college teams making changes at halftime, you know, that first game. You know, Notre Dame, Alabama, there's a quarterback competition. At halftime of the first game, they make a change because they didn't really get a chance to truly evaluate the guys during training camp. Now that they've seen them in action, they don't like what they see, and so they make a switch.

We might see stuff like that play out in the NFL this year. And another thing is that, you know, us in the media, we want to get as much information as we can and then pass it on to our readers, our listeners, our viewers. Teams have to be a bit more tight-lipped this training camp because, and I had this pointed out to me by somebody that works for a Pac-12 school, you know, part of the reason that college coaches are so tight-lipped about formations

and personnel and player usage during training camp is because you don't know who's going to be the starting right tackle for a team you might have three guys from you know fighting for a job and that's the team you're playing week one and you don't want to let the world know who your right tackle is going to be it's the same thing now for the NFL like there are jobs on the line there are competitions and spots and you don't want to signal to your week one opponent who that guy's going to be once the game kicks off. And so it's unlike any training camp or preseason we've ever covered. There's going to be a lot on these teams to try to figure things out on the fly. And the teams that do the best at bringing real game situations to practice and replicating those as best as they can. And then putting these emotional and mental stresses on that players are the

teams that are going to be successful. And look, we're all Patriots fans here. If you're listening to the show, you're a past man. You know that one of the best that there ever has been at stressing situational awareness and putting his players in positions to test them mentally and physically during training camp is Bill Belichick. And that's why I think even in this strange year, the Patriots will have some success as a result of who they have calling the shots as the head coach. Yeah, and you can already see that in some of the drills they're running in practice,

some of the strategy that they're employing. And just in what Bill has to say, he was asked that question again this morning during his press conference Friday morning, and he essentially said that it's a challenge. The Patriots are definitely aware of that, but it's not uncharted territory. It's not anything that is impossible to overcome. It's not an insurmountable task for these guys to be able to evaluate talent, their own talent, as well as talent throughout the league, and put forth a competitive team. So I'm glad that you make that point.

And, again, I think you are absolutely right on the money when you say that there are few if any in the history of the nfl that are so great at situational preparedness than head coach bill belichick and his staff so they'll be ready to go and that does lead me quite nicely into my final question for you today my friend um it again it may not be ideal but these teams are going to form their rosters this year. Those rosters will compete on the field. At least we hope so. That's the assumption that we're all running under now is that there will be significant football played this year. And that includes New England. But some players over the past week have started to show

some exponential growth in making a name for themselves. And I don't necessarily mean making a catch here and there or making a pick on defense. We alluded to this in the previous segment that it's not all about the ooh and ah factor. I mean the fundamentals, the day in and day out intricacies of being a productive football player, not only in New England, but also in the National Football League. Mark, from your coverage of Patriots training camp thus far, is there anybody that has already caught your sharp eye in this department? And is there still a diamond in the rough on this roster that you believe is yet to make an impact before camp is in the books? I mean, I think you have to look at three of the rookies, two of those who have caught my eye,

one that could be a potential diamond in the rough that they might have to rely on. And it starts on the defensive side of the ball these are all defensive players and the first is Josh Uchik the defender the linebacker from Michigan because you know when I was down in Mobile and watching him up close seeing him in pass rushing drills he had that proverbial tweener tag which is you know unders defender, maybe you use him as a situational pass rusher, but not really sure if he finds a full-time home on a defense in the NFL. Well, the Patriots seem to disagree with that sort of assessment because they're using him, yes, in some roles like that,

but they're also using him as a traditional off-ball linebacker. He lined up next to Jawan Bentley at times. So they seem to be confident in what he can do and what he can bring. And this is a second level of the defense that has been hampered, and you could even say decimated, by both free agency losses during the offseason, you know, with Kyle Vannoli and Jamie Collins and Alandon Roberts all having new homes, as well as the decision by Dante Hightower to opt out because of concerns over COVID-19. And now you're looking at having to sort of rebuild what you're doing on the

defensive side of the ball. And, you know, they might be able to use Josh Usha as more of a standup linebacker in the middle of the defense, similar to how they used Jamie Collins last year. And so he's somebody that stood up, obviously a player that's getting a ton of attention as Kyle Duggar, those, you know, second round draft pick, the division two safety, everything I've seen, everything I'm sure you've seen, everything I've been told, everything I'm sure you've been told, Mike,

this guy's all over the place right now is that he's well ahead of where people expected a division two small school safety to be. You know, when they drafted him, a lot of people thought special team or year one learns as a Patrick Chun, then maybe in years two, three, and four, he's a full-time contributor on the defense. Well, with Patrick Chun opting out, Daron Harmon having a new home in Detroit, a team that ran a lot of three safety packages last year now is really down to one of their three starting safeties with Devin McCourty. And so Kyle Duggar has a tremendous opportunity in front of him to not just earn a starting spot,

but to really contribute to this team and everything we've seen so far in training camp is pointing to the direction of, yeah, he'll be ready in week one as they work even from a small division two school. And so those two guys have been very impressive. But one guy that I think we're kind of waiting on because he's finally returned to practice after being held out a little bit as Anthony Jennings and similar to the discussion about Josh Uche is when you have so many you know losses at that second level of the defense you need guys to contribute and if Jennings can just give them something whether you know on the edge you know both against the run

which is where he's at his best and give them something as a pass rusher at times. You need more, more pass rushing than you expect. It's like, it's like pitching in baseball. You can never have too much pitching. You can never have too many pass rushers. And right now you're looking at John Simon at one edge, and then maybe a rotation of Uche, Winovich and maybe Anthony Jennings at the other edge. And if Uche is going to have to be used as more of a middle linebacker, off-ball linebacker, now you're down to Winovich and Jennings at the other edge. And if Uche is going to have to be used as more of a middle linebacker,

off-ball linebacker, now you're down to Winovich and Jennings. And I don't think anybody really expects Winovich to be a three-down player. He does seem to be more of a rotational guy. So you're going to need something from Jennings, perhaps on first and second downs. If they can get that from him, I'll feel much better about this defensive front that I did, you know, a couple of weeks ago.

Excellent insight. And I completely agree with you on Uche. Uche, by consensus, has been all over the place. He's been lining up in so many different formations. A former colleague of yours, current colleague of mine, host of Locked On Wolverines, Isaiah Holt, joined me pre-draft here on the pod and had so many glowing things to say about Joshua Uche and what he can bring to a

defense and the minute his name was called that's exactly what I thought of was Isaiah's assessment of this kid and so far he's lived up to it so I definitely agree with you on that I think Uche has been a standout in camp Duggar obviously has been the hot name everybody's been seeing what he can do picking up the playbook and really kind of picking up the mantra has made me wonder whether or not he might be in line to start right away in the Patrick Chung position. I originally thought that was going to be Adrian Phillips. I still believe that at the end of the day because I've covered Adrian when I covered him with the Chargers. I still love the dynamic and the dimensions that he can bring to this defense, but Kyle is proving that he's a pro and he's going to be a pro a lot quicker than a lot

of people have thought. Jennings is another guy that is very intriguing to me, coming from a Nick Saban product in Alabama. Being able to acclimate himself into a Patriots system is something that I think they can really utilize and something that I think spells well for him. Two guys that I wanted to give a little love to in terms of the rookies. You mentioned the rookies. I think Devin Asiasi has turned some heads and not so much because his pass catching prowess. I think a lot of people realize that, but if there was a knock on Devin, it was his ability to block. I think that right now what

I've seen in training camp, at least by consensus for those that are able to cover in person, he's winning at the point of attack in the run game against some veteran defenders on this team. That really spells well for him in being a full-time tight end one for a lot of, you know, all intents and purposes. So I like Asiasi from him so far. Kashmal Alea as well, I think, has performed well in this preseason uh he makes quick reads he's got pretty good instincts uh we've seen him pick off a couple of the quarterbacks uh doesn't seem to be confused that much and i think that could spell well for him uh going in as well and of course i wouldn't be able to finish off the pod today without mentioning and giving a

little love for my man gunner rochelski look folks I said to open the pod today, Gunnar is a lot more to me when I look at his game than just my love of a Spaceballs meme. It's far from it. I think he's shown quickness. I think he's shown a great ability to get out of the break and get separation in the inside the numbers passing game. He's looked very impressive. A lot of my colleagues that have been up at Gillette have been very impressed by what we've seen from Gunner he's bigger he's stronger even Bill Belichick had glowing things to say about him this morning so those are the guys we're keeping our sharp eye on and Mark what can I say you give insight and you know just X's and O analysis that is second to none not just here on the pod but in every aspect of everything that you do, my friend.

Always have a blast when you come back to check on the total poster and take a look at your old surroundings. Once again, I always strive each and every day to get this show right in your honor. So honored and grateful for all the help you've given me throughout the years. So I continue to bless the reins in your honor, my friend. I normally ask people to say where they can find you on social media and close the show in that regard. But, Mark, you're a football royalty.

If you're an NFL fan or any football fan, you know exactly where to find Mark. So please enlighten us, my friend. Where can we look forward to in the analytic world of Schofield in the coming days? Well, Mike, as always, it's just great to be back with you. It's great to catch up with you. Always a blast to come on. As I say all the time, I'm such a huge fan of the work that you do and how you're taking the show to new heights and greater heights.

It's great to see. For those who want to check out what I'm doing, again, Touchdown Wire, a part of the USA Today Network, is where a bulk of my coverage is right now. I'm actually working on a series. My one piece of advice for every expected starting quarterback in the NFL and the season ahead, so I'm going to be putting that out probably in the next day or so over at USA Today's Touchdown Wire. If, for example, I was given a chance to talk to, say, a Cam Newton,

a Jared Stidham, a Kyler Murray, you know, what would I say to them before they took the field? And so you can look for that shortly. But more than anything else, follow me on the Bird app on Twitter, at Mark Schofield. You'll see lots of Scrubs gifts and total references. And I've been having a lot of fun with that Reface app lately, where you can put your face

in a in a gif i did that with a scrubs total gif recently that um let's just say like kind of kept me awake that night um because it's a bit strange to see but it's a bit it was a it was definitely fun to put together try to have some fun on there but um as always mike thanks so much for having me always a blast to come on with you uh always a pleasure. And I'm glad that you mentioned that FaceApp GIF. I may have to dabble into this. We may have to see Mike's face in The Godfather or something to that effect to allow me to live out my fantasies. But in all actuality, my friend, it's always my honor, always my pleasure to welcome you back here. Thank you for everything that you do.

We look forward to viewing and reading all of the great work that you do and listening as well. Mark is, once again, a master podcaster. You set a phenomenal table for me to inherit here, my friend. And again, I hope I do you justice every day by doing so, but the greatest honor is calling you a friend, and I truly mean that from the bottom of my heart.

Stay safe, stay well, have a great weekend to you and yours. We look forward to having you back here throughout the season to discuss the quarterback prowess in New England and also what the team is doing. Because ultimately, at the end of the day, you have to compete. And we're all about competing for championships in New England. Anything less would be uncivilized, my friend. Exactly, my friend. Exactly, my friend, exactly. And so, Patriots fans, we tie a knot on the week that was here on the Locked On Patriots podcast.

And now that the pads have been on for nearly a week, the intensity of the practices in the weeks coming will only intensify. As I have each and every day this week, I continue to pledge for next week and beyond, right up until the beginning of the regular season, that I will do my best to keep you informed of the latest news notes and analysis from Foxborough when it comes to 2020 New England Patriots training camp. So, to ensure that you do not miss a single second of the action, follow the Locked On Patriots podcast on Spotify. Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts. Download Locked on Patriots wherever you get your podcasts.

And don't forget that when in doubt, you can always listen to Locked on Patriots right on your very own smart device. Just ask it to play the latest episode of Locked on Patriots. Once again, I'm Mike DeBate. I thank Mark Schofield for his time, his insight, and his appearance on today's pod.

But most of all, I thank you so much for listening and for remaining locked in to Locked On Patriots. Patriots Nation, stay safe, stay well, be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great weekend, everyone.