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Replay: Patriots Unfiltered Tue Jul 29 - 11:00 AM | Thu Aug 07 - 11:55 AM

12 Takeaways From Wednesday's Joint Practice vs. the Commanders for Drake Maye, Patriots Offense

The Patriots offense showed well against the Commanders defense in Wednesday's joint practice.

Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) drops back to pass during a joint practice with the Washington Commanders on Wednesday, August 6, 2025.
Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) drops back to pass during a joint practice with the Washington Commanders on Wednesday, August 6, 2025.

The competition at Patriots training camp turned up another level on Wednesday with the reigning NFC runner-up Washington Commanders visiting Gillette Stadium for a joint practice.

With the Commanders in town, the practice featured two of the top three quarterbacks selected in the 2024 NFL Draft: Commanders star Jayden Daniels and Patriots QB Drake Maye. Although they weren't going head-to-head, per se, Maye and New England's offense showed well in the two-hour session led by head coaches Mike Vrabel and Dan Quinn.

Last summer, the Patriots hosted the team that knocked Washington out of the playoffs a year ago, the eventual Super Bowl champion Eagles, in a joint practice. Philly's loaded defensive front was dominant that day, opening our eyes to the potential issues for the Patriots offensive line. On Wednesday, New England's offensive line versus the Commanders front was a far more even matchup, which bodes well for the Patriots offense. Plus, for most of the practice, Maye was nearly perfect.

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Before we discuss how the practice ended, let's first highlight the positives. Maye connected on 10 of his first 12 throws in full team drills, finding a rhythm by working the middle of the field with shifty slot receiver DeMario Douglas. On one noteworthy play, Douglas burst quickly into the Commanders secondary on a shallow crosser for an explosive play. Then, Maye smoothly dodged pressure off his right side by side-stepping the rush and climbing the pocket, delivering a dart to Douglas, who was running a deeper crossing route this time.

Maye capped off the opening 11-on-11 session with a seam pass to TE Hunter Henry off play-action, a deep out to WR Mack Hollins, another crosser to TE Austin Hooper where Maye manipulated the coverage with a fake to get Hooper open and then capped off a great stretch by finding Hollins in the cover-two hole along the left sideline. The Pats QB was dealing.

"I thought we moved [the ball] well. It was good playing against another team, having all our guys out there and kind of getting the rhythm, build some plays together, and move the ball," Maye told reporters after practice. "It felt good to get our operation done against somebody else. And we did some no-huddle. I thought it went well. So, it was good for us to learn from it, watch it, and just build off it."

Although the day was overwhelmingly positive for the Patriots offense, Maye ended practice with an interception. The two teams came together to run a simulated end-of-game scenario where the offense had 45 seconds from the 25-yard line to score a touchdown. After completing his first two passes, Douglas flashed open quickly on a slant running into the end zone. However, veteran LB Bobby Wagner made a heady play to tip Maye's pass in the air, and Everett, Mass., product Mike Sainristil intercepted the pass off the deflection for the Commanders defense.

"It was a good play for Bobby [Wagner]. I could have looked him a different way and he barely got a hand out. I tried to throw it with some speed down there in the red zone to hopefully not have tip balls, but a good play by him. Unfortunately, but I think it was a good play, I think reading the eyes," Maye said of the interception.

Following a joint practice each summer, the question of who "won" the practice always arises. Yes, we are talking about practice, but it's highly encouraging to write that Maye and the offense made their fair share of plays against a team that was in the NFC Championship Game a year ago. It wasn't perfect, but the offensive line gave Maye time to operate, his receivers (mainly Douglas and Hollins) were getting open downfield and the Pats quarterback was delivering accurate, on-time throws. After how things went last summer against Philly, the Patriots were far more competitive this summer against a playoff-caliber opponent.

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Here are 12 more takeaways from the Patriots competitive joint practice against the Commanders in Foxborough on Wednesday.

- Along with Maye's solid outing, the other standout on the Patriots side was WR DeMario Douglas. Douglas, who was going up against a good slot corner in Sainristill, started hot with three catches in team drills where he created immediate separation. Douglas ran away from Sainristill on a shallow crosser, breaking free to daylight to generate an explosive play. Pop's ability to win on the quick-hitters from the slot, featured in OC Josh McDaniels's offense, continues to stand out. The lone blemish for him was a drop on a well-placed crosser, where Douglas was open once again.

- Veteran WR Mack Hollins had his most noteworthy practice of the summer. Hollins connected with Maye three times on a deep out (with anticipation), a cover-two hole shot and a goal-line rollout concept. Then, he ended practice by reeling in a perfectly thrown slot fade by backup QB Joshua Dobbs. Hollins saw an uptick in opportunities because top WR Stefon Diggs didn't take all his usual reps, and the veteran receiver with his tasseled shirt delivered with his best practice of camp.

- On Diggs, the four-time Pro Bowler arrived late to practice but participated in 7-on-7s and full-team drills. It wasn't Diggs's usual practice workload, but he was out there after not going through stretching with his teammates. He had a Diggsian catch in 7-on-7s and drew a flag on another route. Besides getting a late start, Diggs looked like his usual self.

- WR Kayshon Boutte continued a strong camp by boxing Commanders star corner Marshon Lattimore on a back-shoulder fade for a touchdown from the high red zone. Boutte's been a consistent option for Maye this summer. Second-year WR Javon Baker also continued his roster push by catching a goal-line slant for a touchdown on a pass from Dobbs.

- With veteran RT Morgan Moses sitting out practice, Demontrey Jacobs and seventh-rounder Marcus Bryant rotated in Moses's spot. Bryant is starting to receive more practice reps in a competition to be the top swing tackle and has looked the part in pass protection in recent padded practices. It'll be interesting to see how Bryant plays in Friday night's preseason opener vs. the Commanders (7:30 pm ET at Gillette Stadium).

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- LT Will Campbell held his own against the Commanders edge rushers, including playing old friend Deatrich Wise to an even draw in three 1-on-1 reps. Campbell seemed to win the first rep by anchoring against Wise's long arm, drew the second rep against an inside swim move and then the veteran pass-rusher beat Campbell with a push-pull move. In team, Campbell allowed one pressure but was mostly clean. Admittedly, it's tough to evaluate the offensive line without the benefit of film review, but there wasn't any noticeable pressure coming off the left side.

- Rookie G/C Jared Wilson won 1-on-1 reps vs. DTs Dorance Armstrong and Jacob Martin. Wilson's ability to win immediately with stiff punches or move his feet to recover when his initial punch doesn't land is impressive. He blocks with good balance and lateral movements, and doesn't panic when his initial hand-fighting fails. Like Campbell, Wilson seemed to hold his own in team drills as well, but some interior pressure on one drop-back forced Maye into a scramble. It was tough to say where the pressure came from.

- At center, it was mostly vet Garrett Bradbury, but C/G Ben Brown did get one drive at the pivot. It's unclear why Brown got those reps, and Bradbury finished practice at center. Bradbury's experience and run-blocking ability are decent, but he does get beaten at times by power when bigger nose tackles stress his anchor. RG Mike Onwenu lost his first rep to stud DT Daron Payne but won a rematch vs. Payne and his last rep vs. Norell Pollard in 1-on-1s. Onwenu continues to hold down the right guard spot.

- Along with repping at right tackle, Bryant also saw snaps at left tackle next to LG Cole Strange. Strange was at guard after practicing for a few days at center.

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- The Patriots play-action passing concepts were working well vs. the Commanders defense, with tight ends Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper getting open seams and crossers past the second level of the defense. Hollins also got open for a score on a goal-line rollout play, so that aspect of the offense was clicking for the Pats offense on Wednesday.

- Although the passing game was sharp, the Commanders defense was stingier against the run besides a Maye scramble for a touchdown in the low red zone. The run blocking has mostly been good for the Patriots offense this summer, but Washington was tough up front.

- Rookie RB TreVeyon Henderson stood up a Washington blitzer in the A-Gap with a thud, starting a skirmish that appeared to result in HC Mike Vrabel getting cut trying to separate the two sides (football guy). Although the head coach's involvement is garnering headlines, Henderson's skill as a pass protector continues to translate from college to the pro game. The rookie did drop a perfectly placed pass by Maye on a wheel route in the end zone, though. Still, Henderson's speed to separate over the top continues to haunt opposing linebackers.

DISCLAIMER: The views and thoughts expressed in this article are those of the writer and don't necessarily reflect those of the organization. Read Full Disclaimer

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