New England Patriots

"Everywhere he’s gone, he’s been a guy that you see him on SportsCenter the next day."

By Conor Ryan

June 10, 2026 | 7:22 PM

6 minutes to read

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FOXBOROUGH — The Patriots were back at their practice fields behind Gillette Stadium on Wednesday for the second day of the club’s mandatory minicamp.

After putting in some extensive red-zone reps on Tuesday, Mike Vrabel and his staff opted for a lighter practice the following afternoon, with zero competitive drills in what was more of a walkthrough practice.

“Today will probably look a little different,” Vrabel said ahead of practice. “It probably won’t be as much speed stuff, but we will come back and get that same speed that we had yesterday further down in the red zone tomorrow. So, it will look a little different today, just by design, as far as the pace that you will see.”

Even with an easier workload, there were several noteworthy developments from a muggy afternoon in Foxborough.

Here are five takeaways from Wednesday’s practice:

Maye continues to target Brown heavily

The early returns have been very promising for new Patriots wideout A.J. Brown and his chemistry with Drake Maye.

After hitting Brown with several impressive back-shoulder heaves during 11-on-11 drills Tuesday, Maye continued to target his new pass-catching weapon early and often on Wednesday.

Even during Wednesday’s easier lift as far as competitive drills go, Brown at one point snagged three-straight catches from his QB during a red-zone sequence.

Speaking after practice, Maye did little to mask his enthusiasm for getting to work with an All-Pro talent at wideout moving forward.

“It’s hard not to get excited; what a player he is,” Maye said of Brown. “What a great teammate so far. He’s eager to learn. He’s great with the guys in the locker room, and we just look forward to playing with a guy of that caliber. I know he’s been a great player in this league.”

Brown’s versatile skillset should be a welcome sight for a Patriots offense that — while explosive last season — still sputtered down the stretch during the playoffs.  

Standing at 6-foot-1 and 226 pounds, Brown has the physical frame to out-muscle smaller defensive backs and beat them on the outside as an “X” receiver.

But, the 28-year-old wideout still has the shiftiness and speed to cut inside and gain chunk yardage on slants, curls, and other routes that Josh McDaniels and Co. will look to utilize this season.  

After capitalizing last season while working alongside another established wideout in Stefon Diggs, Maye is excited to see what Brown can offer this team moving forward.

​“Everywhere he’s gone, he’s been a guy that you see him on SportsCenter the next day, you know, making plays and scoring,” Maye said of Brown. “And the best thing about him, he’s been a winner.

“He knows what it’s like to win and he adds something in that room that we’ve kind of been looking for. … I think Stef provided for us last year, and there’s been guys that are growing in the roles, but just coming in with that stature and his ability and his size and just the respect that you walk in there with that kind of Stef had. A.J.’s got it, too.”

Lomu steps in as starter once again

For the second practice in a row, Patriots 2026 first-round pick Caleb Lomu logged regular reps as the team’s starting right tackle.

Lomu initially projected as more of a backup/swing tackle this season — giving him ample time to work on his craft before eventually moving into a full-time role in 2027.

But New England’s starting right tackle, Morgan Moses, has been absent during minicamp after appearing to suffer an injury during OTAs last week.

“We are just managing Morgan and are excited that he is so committed to our football team and the people here … It’s a long season,” Vrabel said Tuesday. “He was important to us, and he will be very important to us going forward. So, just trying to make sure that we manage him. Figure that every rep now is probably one less that he may take in the season.”

Even if Vrabel isn’t sounding the alarm with Moses, the 35-year-old tackle’s health will be worth monitoring this year — especially if it pushes Lomu into a featured role as a rookie.

“He’s been around a ton, and he’s been one of the biggest helps for me, especially coming in not knowing the playbook as a rookie,” Lomu said of working with Moses. “He’s been through it [for] so many years in the league, he knows what to expect, and now he’s been guiding me a lot through these practices and meetings that we have. He’s been a huge help, and so it’s been awesome to be able to have him and his experience in the room to be able to help me grow as a rookie.​

Lomu — who established himself as a top NFL prospect while playing left tackle at Utah — says he’s finding his footing at right tackle so far this summer.

“It’s just a thing you’ve just got to get used to [and] get a few practices in,” the 21-year-old Lomu said. “The first practice was a little weird at first because I wasn’t very used to it, but I feel very comfortable at right tackle right now.”

Attendance report

Much like Tuesday’s practice, the Patriots had three absences on Wednesday — Moses, Gabe Jacas, and Harold Landry.

Similar to Moses, the Patriots appear to be limiting Landry’s workload this summer, with the veteran pass-rusher hindered last season with a nagging knee injury.

“Harold has played a lot of football, and so we just have to try to — this is all part of everyone has a little different plan. … For him to take reps right now in the spring, I feel like, is unnecessary,” Vrabel said Tuesday. “We will just keep working to make sure that he is ready to go when we need him.”​

Jacas — New England’s 2026 second-round pick — has also not been present at both OTAs and minicamp. 

Vrabel noted on Tuesday that Jacas underwent a procedure earlier this offseason, but the talented pass-rusher has also yet to sign his rookie contract in New England.

After taking limited competitive reps on Tuesday, Christian Gonzalez was a full participant during team drills on Wednesday.

But, with the final day of minicamp expected to be more of a higher-tempo, competitive session, it remains to be seen how involved Gonzalez — still mired in a contract dispute with New England — will be in the next practice if the team rolls out 11-on-11 drills once again.

Adding a tight end?

The Patriots had a significant loss before the 2026 season could even begin in earnest, with tight end Julian Hill suffering a season-ending injury during offseason workouts last month. 

Hill — who signed a three-year, $15 million contract with New England earlier this offseason — was expected to step into a significant role as the Patriots’ backup tight end behind Hunter Henry in 2026. ​

The 25-year-old tight end spent the last three seasons with the Dolphins, reeling in 15 catches for 140 yards over 11 games in 2025 while contributing in pass protection and the run game by way of some hard-nosed blocks.

But, with Hill now out of the equation, Vrabel acknowledged on Wednesday that New England might be in the market for another tight end this summer.  

“Just from a numbers standpoint at camp, I think that is somewhere where we will probably have to evaluate the numbers,” Vrabel said. “I mean, there are 90, 91 guys on every team, so we will just have to take a look at that. But I would say that is probably somewhere where we would have to address.”

Beyond Henry, the Patriots still have Jack Westover, CJ Dippre, and rookies Eli Raridon and Tanner Arkin on the depth chart at tight end.

While pass-catching targets like Darren Waller remain available in free agency, the Patriots likely covet more of a run-blocking option as Henry’s backup for this season.

A competitive ‘family’

The Patriots ended practice on Wednesday in unique fashion — with trainers and coaches bringing out several wooden sleds near the end zone.

In total, groups of seven different Patriots players across multiple position groups teamed up to try and push the sled 40 yards down the field, with coaches timing which group could finish first in the drill.

Speaking after practice, Maye said that Vrabel and his staff have already incorporated several team-building exercises this offseason — splitting the roster into random groups called “families” to build camaraderie across different segments of the club.

“We split up into teams, split up from the families at the beginning of the offseason. Kind of had about 13 teams, had some captains in each team and have about seven players in each,” Maye said. “So we’re kind of keeping a point tally. … I think my family may be in second [place].

“We got some work to do… It’s just another way of team building and competing and having to strategize and kind of have something that may not go right and try to fix it.”