Lazar: Patriots’ Improved Offense is Already Looking the Part in Training Camp

“OK, now you’ve got Devin McCourty showing something, Kyle Dugger’s showing something. Then all of a sudden, [Dont’a] Hightower jumps over here, and all of a sudden, it’s like, ‘What do I do? What do I do? What do I do? It’s just taking the brain a little longer at times. But hopefully, with a lot of repetitions, it’ll be good.”

Rookie Mac Jones is making positive strides as well. He flashes timing, touch, accuracy, and pocket movement daily. And you can tell that Jones is only scratching the surface in this offense.

The slight edge goes to Newton in the early going, but it’s not in a landslide. Both QBs are stringing together good throws, signaling that, with improved weapons, both Newton and Jones could succeed.

At the moment, Belichick is closing the door on an open competition, but both quarterbacks see time with the offense’s key figures. You don’t do that if there’s no chance that Jones could start.

The product the Patriots’ offense put on tape last season was a disaster in the teams’ first year without Tom Brady in two decades.

After watching Brady win a Super Bowl with Tampa Bay, Belichick’s response was spending $77.5 million guaranteed on free-agent pass-catchers, along with sizable additions on defense as well.

Although it’s early, we are already seeing the plan on paper come to fruition on the practice field on the offensive side of the ball.