Bedard: Ten things I think I think about the Patriots after two weeks of camp - Offense making strides

The Patriots have practiced nine times and will have another two sessions starting today before they embark on games, with the Panthers up first on Thursday. Taking stock where the Patriots are heading into the next phase of camp addressing, among other things:

The offense
Jacoby Brissett's leadership
Drake Maye's progress
The futures of Juju Smith-Schuster and Matthew Judon
Offensive tackle
Hunter Henry
Jerod Mayo so far, including him calling out Christian Gonzalez

1. I think it's tough to see, but the offense is making progress.

You might not be able to tell by looking at the various practice "stats" but Alex Van Pelt's offense is making progress. They did get off to a horrible start in the non-padded practices. Yes, it was similar to Matt Patricia's start. It was that bad. But since then, the difference between the two installs has been night and day. Patricia's offense didn't improve at all, and might have gotten worse as the players lost faith the coaches knew what they were doing. The difference this time around is Van Pelt and the rest of the offensive coaches know what they are doing, and the players are seeing the improvement. That gets you buy-in. A lot of the coaches, especially Van Pelt, might not have been many people's first choices for offensive coaches, but they've been effective so far. The jury is still out on WRs coach Tyler Hughes and line coach Scott Peters, in particular, but there's little doubt their units have made steady progress and that's a very good indicator. I just can't get over the difference at this point between the units of Patricia and Van Pelt. Actually, what am I talking about. Of course I can. One was a career defensive coach.

2. I think it feels more like Jacoby Brissett's team every day.

The Patriots put out a cool mic'd up video the other day:

I had this feeling and wrote about it after Saturday's practice, but just the vibe of practice and watching the players work left me with the feeling that if this isn't Jacoby Brissett's team already, it's very close to that point. That's not a knock on Drake Maye or anything - he's a young rookie in a scheme for the first time while Brissett is a veteran who has been in and played well in this scheme. This was likely bound to happen. Confidence comes from being comfortable. Brissett has been here before and knows what he's doing in the scheme. Maye is new to both.

Brissett is just a natural-born leader and you can tell that his teammates respect and enjoy him. Maye should just be worried about doing his job and getting up to speed, and that's what he's doing. I'm sure soon - and it could be very soon - Maye will start to be more of himself on the field once he becomes more confident in what he's doing. Speaking of that.

3. I think Drake Maye is doing just fine.

He's had his ups and downs, but they've been typical of a rookie QB, especially one who is so young in age and experience. He certainly flashes his potential, especially in 7-on-7s. Team periods have been tougher, but it also hasn't helped that he's playing with ... how should I put this ... less-than-optimal talent, especially on the offensive line (when David Andrews isn't going and Atonio Mafi has to play center on the second unit, it's really rough). It's getting to be that time, perhaps in the next couple of days, when Maye needs to at least get a looksie with the top unit in practice. That could give him a boost of confidence.

Still, I don't want him to start the season for the Patriots - there's too much to be sorted out with the offense and I don't want the future of the franchise being used as a test tube baby in the early going. But at some point you need to gauge his near-term potential, and that needs to happen in the next couple of weeks.

4. I think I don't know what the Patriots are waiting for with Juju Smith-Schuster.

Maybe they are hoping he flashes in the preseason and someone will fork over a 7th-round pick for the veteran receiver to help alleviate the cap hit (or insurance in case of injury), but the chances of Smith-Schuster making this roster feel fairly remote at this point. 

Demario Douglas, Ja'Lynn Polk, KJ Osborn and Javon Baker feel like near-locks at this point. Kendrick Bourne will likely be on PUP. Jalen Reagor, Tyquan Thornton and Kayshon Boutte have outperformed Juju to this point, and it hasn't been close. I mean, Juju has been relegated to the Joe Milton/Bailey Zappe squad in split reps - as has Boutte.

5. I think I don't know what the Patriots are doing at offensive tackle.

Both Chuks Okorafor and Calvin Anderson sitting out practice didn't help things, but I never would have thought entering camp that Vederian Lowe would get three straight practice days as the starting left tackle — after Okorafor and Caeden Wallace. This looks they are still trying the combinations, which is fine. But you would have thought days of Okorafor and Wallace would have had them leaning one way by now. Making Wallace switch from right to left back to right is not normally a great thing for a young player's development. And the line looked better with Wallace on the left and Okorafor on the right. I don't get not sticking with that. Can't Lowe use the snaps at RT?

I'll say this: when Andrews is on the field, the interior looks really, really good. But the depth on the line is almost non-existent.

I need to know the plan at tackle and see it in action before I can really judge how competitive this team will be.

6. I do not think Matthew Judon is going to be traded, at least not anytime soon.

Judging by the 180 in his demeanor late last week, Judon looks to be in a good place with the team - and that usually comes from progress on the contract front. Yes, the Patriots have some options at edge rusher if they decide to move on from Judon, but this team needs all the good players it can get if they are going to show progress this season. With Christian Barmore out for at least most of the season, the Patriots need a proven finisher like Judon more than ever. At the worst, you take care of Judon and make it easier to trade him later if you're bowled over by an offer before the season or at the trade deadline if the Patriots are out of it.

7. I think it sounds like Jerod Mayo hasn't been super impressed by Christian Gonzalez - and he's right.

This was an interesting exchange the other day:

Q: We’ve seen some cornerbacks rotate through. I’m just curious about the depth there, with guys like Marco [Wilson] and Isaiah Bolden. How do you feel like you guys are behind Gonzo [Christian Gonzalez] and Jonathan Jones?

JM: We feel pretty good at this time. Once again, those guys have to earn a role on this team. And it’s not really just defense. You want your corners to be able to play special teams as well, so the battles will continue. Even with Gonzo, he has to go out here each and every day and push it. I always tell these guys that success is rented and not owned, and the rent is due every day, and that applies to Gonzo as well.

Notice how the question sort of bypassed Gonzalez, like it's a given he's going to be a complete stud in Year 2. And then Mayo included Gonzalez, basically saying, "He hasn't proven anything yet, at least not to me."

Gonzalez has been inconsistent in camp. Sounds like the coach trying to motivate a player through the media. I don't hate it.

8. I think Hunter Henry woke up this week and looks like a beast.

It had been a sleepy offseason and start of camp for the veteran tight end, which led me to wonder if he had lost a step. Scratch that. He was great this past week and looks dangerous.

9. I think some of the players might have been cursing Mayo this week, and that's not a bad thing.

Not only did Mayo move the practices to 11 a.m. and not budge on the times despite oppressive heat in the forecast, but he also kept them out there a long time on three straight days and even seemed to add a couple of periods to the practice script, at least on Saturday. I wouldn't be surprised if some veterans were grumbling to themselves about that.

He may have an open door and want the players to be comfortable in the facility, but he's kind of been a hard-ass on the field when it comes to practice. Also something I don't hate.

10. I think, after two weeks of camp, I feel better about the Patriots.

After OTAs and minicamp, I had lost a little faith in my 7-win prediction once the schedule was released. But as of today, I'm not quite as panicked about where the team is. I think things are trending up, even though injuries are becoming an issue. The next 10 days will tell us a lot. You have the Panthers, a joint practice with the Eagles and their preseason matchup. We'll know a lot more after that. But if you're asking me how I'm feeling today ... yeah, I'm feeling better. You can't really quantify it. It's more of an eye test.

Brissett is a steady, experienced hand who is executing the offense well. The line seems to be solidifying. I like Stevenson, Gibson and Hasty in the backfield. I love Douglas and the rookie receivers. Henry looks back to his old self. The defense is doing what they should be doing. Chad Ryland seems to have benefitted from the competition. Jury is out on special teams but I like the returners. In-game coaching and gameplanning are going to be huge but we won't know that for a while.

But, yeah, I feel a weird sense of calm about the team. Maybe I'm just old.