Bedard's Breakdown: Patriots put training wheels on the offense to start season prep

The preparation for the 2018 season officially started for the Patriots' passing game with Thursday night's 37-20 win over the disinterested Eagles.

And judging from what happened in that game, they're evidently taking it with baby steps. Which is probably wise considering how much time Tom Brady has missed in camp (and the offseason) and how he really doesn't have much of a history with a lot of these guys.

So this was very much the training wheels gameplan from Josh McDaniel — except for one series, which we'll get into — and that was a smart approach.

Brady's final line was impressive and he had two plays — the touchdown to Chris Hogan, and the skinny post to Jacob Hollister — that were Brady-esque. But the headline from this game shouldn't be Brady is ready for the season. He's not quite there, and the offense is not.

I mean, the Patriots had Brady throw six passes beyond 10 yards. He had nearly as many (five) behind the line, and had a total of 18 throws 10 yards or under (16 of 18, 135 of his 170 yards, one touchdown).

With the exception of the second series, this was the "Let's Get Everyone Some Work With Tom, But Let's Not Get Him Killed, OK?" gameplan.

When it came to that second series, that was closest as they got to regular-season offense. And it sure looked like Brady knew that was the plan — to up the challenge for only one series — but he wasn't exactly standing calm in the pocket like he would when it counts for real.

On second-and-9, Brady didn't step into his throw, and delivered one late and weak on an 8-yard reception by Julian Edelman. There was the two poorly thrown deep shots to Phillip Dorsett and Hogan that should have been intercepted, and there was the hospital ball Brady threw high to Cordarrelle Patterson (who may have been at fault as he pitter-pattered out of his break combined with the fact Brady may have just been trying to throw it away and didn't intend for Patterson to go for it). There was also another panicky throw late and out of bounds to Dorsett. On the drive, Brady was 1 for 5 for 8 yards, with two balls nearly intercepted and two that had no chance to be completed (perhaps on purpose).

So, I wouldn't call this the Brady Show. This was the James White Show, because that guy was awesome and he did exactly what he does during the regular season.

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QUARTERBACKS

Vintage Brady stepping up and delivering the TD to Hogan. Good decision by Brady not to throw in the left flat to White, because if he did (and it was open), Edelman may have been called for a pick. It was outside the 1-yard zone. ... Outside of his underthrow of Patterson (you're going to need a bigger boat to lead him), Brian Hoyer was better than the preseason opener, but two of his best throws were dropped (Patterson, Eric Decker). ... Good wheels from Danny Etling.

RUNNING BACKS

Is White ever off balance? No. Mark of a really good runner. ... Mike Gillislee did have a nice 13-yard run and some of his blocking was poor (FB Henry Poggi has had a rough go in two games), but he does a lot of damage to himself with some bad reads and his lack of patience to let the hole develop. Maybe he's pressing to secure a roster spot (probably has one now that we know Rex Burkhead has a real injury), but he's got to relax and just play ball. Jeremy Hill has been much better because he's more patient. ... Brandon Bolden could be on my team any time.

RECEIVERS

Dorsett needs to do a better job of reading Trent Brown's block on the red-zone screen on the first drive. ... Hollister may not have broken off his route on an Eagles blitz on the second drive when Brady ended up throwing late and wide to Dorsett. Brady was staring Hollister down waiting for him to do something. ... Great catch by Hollister on the skinny post. One of the first real plays/throws on the night. But is it me, or does Hollister get dinged a lot? ... You can tell Brady doesn't have a lot of confidence in most of his guys on hot routes, but the 5-yard hitch to Edelman on third-and-3 was vintage. Brady's going to need a lot of those this season, so Edelman better stay healthy. ... Patterson had a really good night with a touchdown and two nice catches, but he also had a false start, drop and a slip that made it look like Hoyer threw a poor pass (it wasn't).

OFFENSIVE LINE

There's good and bad news about my guy Trent Brown in Thursday night's game. The good news is that on 34 snaps, he was nearly flawless. The bad news is that on five plays he was not (poor run block, stuffed run and three hurries allowed) and that four of them occurred on consecutive plays in the second quarter. Might be nothing, but it did start to get me thinking that maybe game conditioning is an issue for the big fella. I mean, he's been great in every way to this point, but it hasn't exactly been a game load in practices or the games. This is something I'm going to watch very carefully against the Panthers, when I expect the line to play well into the second half. Brown was easily the worst starter in this game, and it was all because of four-straight plays. Strange. ... Both Shaq Mason and LaAdrian Waddle struggled when the Eagles' starters were in there early. Again, Fletcher Cox was a beast. ... Nice downfield blocking by Mason on White's early 22-yard run. ... Best screen blocking I've seen from David Andrews, Joe Thuney and Mason in some time. ... Jason King completely whiffed on his sack allowed.

THREE UP

RB James White: I don't know if there's a better pass-catching RB in the league.

C David Andrews: Was totally in control against a very good defensive line.

RB Jeremy Hill: Time for him to get more run with the first team to see what he can do.

THREE DOWN

OG Jason King: Was injured for a while and then came back to give up a sack in 12 snaps.

TE Will Tye: Had one really nice catch but also had a drop, a half knockdown allowed and a stuffed run allowed.

WR Phillip Dorsett: His lack of action wasn't his fault, but he needs to start playing with more confidence. It's time. He's not new here anymore.