Welcome to first and 10, a roundup of all the (mostly) Patriots-related news you need to start your Tuesday. Grab your coffee and let’s get to it.
Around the league, Tuesday is usually a big day for free-agent workouts. There's no practice, so teams like to bring guys in so coaches can give them a look. They'll get players in the facility, ask them some questions, have them work out -- in New England, it's different for different positions. While they might not sign that player immediately, there's also the value of intel down the road. While there will likely be a few guys in Foxborough today, New England has been busy the last week or so checking out the market.
--On Monday, they reportedly took a look at free-agent wide receiver Corey Coleman. Coleman had 56 catches for 718 yards and five touchdowns in two seasons with Cleveland. They also had a bunch of offensive linemen and defensive backs in for a look late last week, according to a league source: G Tony Adams (North Carolina State), G Spencer Drango (Baylor), C Jake Eldrenkamp (Washington), DB Kalan Reed (Southern Mississippi), DB Josh Robinson (Central Florida). There have likely been others -- these are just the ones I'm aware of.
As for the one name that a lot of people are talking about, Mike Giardi of NFL Network tweeted the following on Monday:
Dez Bryant continues to politic for the Pats, but I just spoke with a #Patriots team source who reiterated what I was told weeks ago, the team remains - and I quote - "probably no" on the ex-Cowboy.
— Michael Giardi (@MikeGiardi) September 10, 2018
6. Bill O'Brien explained why he didn't take a timeout to force the officials to get a closer look at that Rob Gronkowski catch. "I very much realize I can take a timeout there. I decided not to because I felt from my vantage point that it was a catch and that's what I went with," he explained. "They didn't buzz down in time. OK, I do realize that I can take a timeout. I just didn't make that very clear or answer that question very well last night."
How do we feel about victory number one?
Inside the locker room after the #Patriots win: https://t.co/oDxOWJjHdo pic.twitter.com/oBTRDGN7cZ
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 11, 2018