The Patriots' passing offense was once again choppy Tuesday as TEs Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez and WR Brandon Lloyd stayed on the sidelines with undisclosed injuries. Their absences are believed to be preventative in nature.
Blanket coverage: Great day for the defense, especially for the secondary. The defense had four interceptions for the second straight practice, and got their hands on another five passes and broke them up. The safeties, Steve Gregory and Patrick Chung, had terrific practices. Gregory had an interception and two pass breakups. Chung had a pick and an breakup.
Line still struggling: The offensive line was terrible. It got whipped (2-11-1) by the defense in one-on-ones, and might have been just as bad in a two-on-two session. There were at least eight would-be sacks or tackles for a loss against the run in team drills. RT Marcus Cannon again had a very rough go, as did RG Nick McDonald, who was working in place of the injured Dan Connolly (undisclosed).
Jones teaches Solder a lesson: The team's last two top draft picks, DE Chandler Jones and LT Nate Solder, went head-to-head in one-on-ones and it seemed like the roles were reversed because the rookie Jones made Solder look bad. Jones slapped Solder's hands down and then clubbed him to the side for the would-be sack. Who's the rookie?
More prep: Another situation- and preparation-heavy practice with cards for the opponents (running plays off cards for what opponents do). The defense got about a half dozen reps against the wildcat. The Bills and Jets are each expected to use it during the season.
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