Rookie Mini-camp, Day 2

[freak]

http://noflash.patriots.com/news/FullArticle.sps?id=23880&type=general

Kingsbury and the nine other members of the draft class joined various free agents and young Patriots veterans for the third of four workouts in Foxborough on Saturday morning. He directed the offense and showed an accurate arm, especially on shorter crossing routes. He appears to have a good grasp on the mechanics of the position, but intends to spend much of the coming weeks with his head buried in the playbook.

“It's like being a freshman all over again trying to learn everything,” Kingsbury said. “But there's 28 other guys doing it with me. It's all a learning experience. I just want to come and learn as much as I can as quickly as I can.”

Kingsbury's favorite target during the morning was free agent rookie Rob Milanese, a 5-9, 179-pound wide receiver out of Penn. Milanese is hardly an imposing figure among behemoths like first-round pick Ty Warren, but Head Coach Bill Belichick said he had other qualities that made him attractive.

“He was a very productive receiver at Penn,” Belichick said. “He has a lot of speed and quickness and he catches the ball very well. He's been competitive out there both in the slot and as an outside receiver.”

Most of Milanese's damage came on quick look in slants and crossing routes, which seemed to work hand-in-hand with Kingsbury's strengths. But on one play, during a one-on-one drill with the defensive backs, Milanese took on second-round pick Eugene Wilson and completely turned him inside out.

Milanese used a double move, heading toward the post before quickly darting to the outside and spinning Wilson around in the process. Wilson did a nice job of recovering, however, and was able to bother the receiver enough to prevent the completion.

The players were scheduled for one more workout on the field beginning at 3 p.m. but that session was closed to the media because of the soccer doubleheader being held at Gillette Stadium. Many of the rookies will return to their college campuses where some will complete their education. They'll have no commitments until passing camps begin later in the month and the formal mini-camp at the start of June. Until then, Belichick asked the players to keep a few things in mind.

“There are three things for them to work on between now and then,” Belichick said. “One would be their physical conditioning. Also, they can work on the techniques they'll be playing in our system. And the need to learn the terminology and the basic calls and communication we use so they'll have a better recall when they hear it when they come back. And all the rookies are dealing with the whole relocation procedure, which can be very difficult at times.”

Mini-camp notes

Seventh-round pick Spencer Nead, a tight end out of Brigham Young, grew up in a tiny town in Idaho called Tetonia, which features a gas station, café, bar, church, an elementary school and not much else. But despite that remote location, Nead grew up a passionate Boston Celtics fan and was thrilled when he heard he'd be headed to the Northeast.

“I'm excited to be here,” Nead said. “I'm a huge Celtics fan and I love Larry Bird. That was the first thing I thought of when I got drafted. I told my wife about four months ago that I had to get a pair of those Celtics shorts and when I got drafted she told me I might as well get them now.”

Nead performed his missionary work in Omaha, Neb., unlike the many exotic locations most BYU students travel to. But that was necessarily a bad thing.

“You don't get a lot of a choice. It's kind of like getting drafted,” Nead said. “You fill out an application and it says, 'Would you be good at learning a foreign language?' and you answer from 1-5. I kind of wanted to stay in the states and I put a low number.” …

Tully Banta-Cain, the Patriots second of three seventh-round picks, looked good during coverage drills as an outside linebacker. That could be good news for Belichick and the Patriots since Banta-Cain was a defensive end at Cal. and is making the transition off the line to 'backer.

“When I was told I'd be coming here I knew they ran a 3-4 scheme,” Banta-Cain said. “I knew I'd have to play outside linebacker and I'm starting to get the hang of it. Now that I'm here I just have to make the best of it.”

Banta-Cain had an interesting story about the derivation of his name. He uses the surnames of both his mother and father and added his first name came as the result of a dream his mother had before he was born. …

Belichick indicated during his press conference that top pick Ty Warren was handling “some menial tasks” that are normally reserved for players of his lofty draft status. Warren reported that separating the team's meeting room with a divider and making sure each of the players is successfully transported from a local hotel to the stadium were chief among his duties.

***Edited/Fixed link

 

[pookie]

Good stuff!! I love the little piece about Ty Warren handling some menial tasks.... Nothing like a little dose of rookie hazing!

Also, not to sound too excited but Kingsbury sounds like he's getting off on the right foot in his passing game.

 

[Guest]

http://noflash.patriots.com/news/FullArticle.sps?id=23880&type=general

Kingsbury's favorite target during the morning was free agent rookie Rob Milanese, a 5-9, 179-pound wide receiver out of Penn. Milanese is hardly an imposing figure among behemoths like first-round pick Ty Warren, but Head Coach Bill Belichick said he had other qualities that made him attractive.

“He was a very productive receiver at Penn,” Belichick said. “He has a lot of speed and quickness and he catches the ball very well. He's been competitive out there both in the slot and as an outside receiver.”

Most of Milanese's damage came on quick look in slants and crossing routes, which seemed to work hand-in-hand with Kingsbury's strengths. But on one play, during a one-on-one drill with the defensive backs, Milanese took on second-round pick Eugene Wilson and completely turned him inside out.

Milanese used a double move, heading toward the post before quickly darting to the outside and spinning Wilson around in the process. Wilson did a nice job of recovering, however, and was able to bother the receiver enough to prevent the completion.

I'm psyched they brought this guy in for a tryout. Not that the Pats really need another short receiver, I'm just psyched to see a Penn grad on the roster...no matter how briefly.

I have heard a theory advanced (national media I believe but I don't remember the specifics) that the short "catch and scamper" type receivers really have a significant advantage in Weis' offense as a function of the design. I don't know if it is true or not but it sure would explain why so many tall receivers struggle in this offense (particularly when you factor in the tight ends) and yet you can seemingly insert short receivers at will.

Milanese would appear to be another in the catch and scamper mode. He owns virtually every receiving record at Penn -- not that THAT means anything in the NFL.

http://www.dailypennsylvanian.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/11/25/3de1f0a7cd98d?in_archive=1

The Pats have brought on 16 undrafted free agents. That surprised me because I don't remember them doing that -- at least not recently. I read an article that suggests that the trend of bringing 20-30 undrafted players to camp which used to be fairly common is changing. Now teams are closer to the cap than they used to be and don't want to load up the cap room for future years. I wonder what they pay these guys? The Pats are fairly close to the cap themselves.

 

[freak]

Re: Re: Rookie Mini-camp, Day 2

I have heard a theory advanced (national media I believe but I don't remember the specifics) that the short "catch and scamper" type receivers really have a significant advantage in Weis' offense as a function of the design. I don't know if it is true or not but it sure would explain why so many tall receivers struggle in this offense (particularly when you factor in the tight ends) and yet you can seemingly insert short receivers at will.

Milanese would appear to be another in the catch and scamper mode. He owns virtually every receiving record at Penn -- not that THAT means anything in the NFL.

http://www.dailypennsylvanian.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/11/25/3de1f0a7cd98d?in_archive=1

The Pats have brought on 16 undrafted free agents. That surprised me because I don't remember them doing that -- at least not recently. I read an article that suggests that the trend of bringing 20-30 undrafted players to camp which used to be fairly common is changing. Now teams are closer to the cap than they used to be and don't want to load up the cap room for future years. I wonder what they pay these guys? The Pats are fairly close to the cap themselves.

Well, taller WRs tend to be stiffer than the small guys. Also, they have a higher center of gravity than small guys, so aren't as quick into and out of cuts. Can you think of one big WR that is extremely precise and quick, and can cut on a dime?

I also remember Phil Simms (iirc) being asked last year if he preferred big or small WRs to throw to. The question was trying to lead him to say the big WRs, but he said he preferred smaller WRs. The reason, he said, is that small guys often get more space between the defender. He said the big guys always seem to have tighter coverage, so you have to be really accurate, while you have a margin of error with smaller WRs.

Not all of the UDFA are signed yet. They would make the rookie minimum as outlined in the CBA. Even those who are signed now, do not count against the cap. Currently only the top 53 count towards the cap.

 

[freak]

I also think part of the reason that small guys are quicker and more agile, as compared to big WRs, is stride.

Tall guys are generally long striders, especially the tall WR types with top speed. Their speed results from their stride, but are not as quick in the short areas because of it.

The shorter guys have the short stride length, combined with a higher stride rate, which helps create separation over a shorter distance. That makes little difference down the field, but a big difference within 10-15 yards.

 

[Guest]

Re: Re: Re: Rookie Mini-camp, Day 2

I also remember Phil Simms (iirc) being asked last year if he preferred big or small WRs to throw to. The question was trying to lead him to say the big WRs, but he said he preferred smaller WRs. The reason, he said, is that small guys often get more space between the defender. He said the big guys always seem to have tighter coverage, so you have to be really accurate, while you have a margin of error with smaller WRs.

Not all of the UDFA are signed yet. They would make the rookie minimum as outlined in the CBA. Even those who are signed now, do not count against the cap. Currently only the top 53 count towards the cap.

I agree on the little guys being quicker and shiftier just as a function of having less mass to accelerate. Momentum is generally a disadvantage in all but gravity sports because things take time to stop as well as to start. My point was more that there is something inherent in the design of the offense, perhaps the routes or the short passing game, which seems to give an advantage to the shorter receiver. As you indicated a big guy has an advantage in getting separation only when he has the time to get separation. He might ultimately be faster but he accelerates slower. A big receiver potentially can get separation standing still by virtue of his height, something a short receiver cannot. Maybe the Pats offense is just not giving these bigger guys time to hit their stride and get open.

Personally, I think we put too much emphasis on having a "big" receiver. An effective receiver is just that, regardless of size. However, it is difficult for the shorter receivers to run longer routes and maintain separation -- a pattern repeated over and over again last year. Tight ends are often the most effective red zone targets in my opinion not due to height but because they have the strength to create and maintain space in close quarters.

Regarding the cap, you are right, I had forgotten about the top 51 rule. It still seems hard to believe that some of these guys could get paid the rookie minimum of $225K just for being in camp -- although the CBA doesn't seem to offer any explanations. Most are brought in to flesh out the drills and practice squads during camp. Some of these guys must be getting just workout pay or something don't you think? I agree that part of it is that not all are signed, although I just read on Patriots.com that 15 are actually "signed" -- that would be $3.375M by conventional wisdom. However, there is also the matter of the rookie allocation. I'm not sure how much the Pats have this year but last year they only had about $2.5M +/- to sign all of their rookies. I'm confused...the more I think I understand about the cap the less I actually know.

 

[patriotmarty12]

Good stuff all, I will say this, I dont care if we have dwarf's on the team or giant's as long as they still have the football in thier hands and are spiking the ball in the endzone..........