Bill Belichick: Patriots are making strides

The Patriots are back at Gillette Stadium and their back to work. That’s typical for August. What’s not typical, however, is that the current pace the team is operating at on the field.

Unlike most years, pads aren’t on and players haven’t had a single practice against one another. Due to Covid-19, the Patriots are easing their way back into and that starts with the basics. The team reported to the stadium last weekend, but after testing and physicals, [...]

The Patriots are back at Gillette Stadium and their back to work. That’s typical for August. What’s not typical, however, is that the current pace the team is operating at on the field.

Unlike most years, pads aren’t on and players haven’t had a single practice against one another. Due to Covid-19, the Patriots are easing their way back into and that starts with the basics. The team reported to the stadium last weekend, but after testing and physicals, players are focused on strength and conditioning.

On Friday, Bill Belichick said it’s similar to what the team does in a typical April and although it’s different, he feels like his team is making the most out of this new normal.

"We’re on the fifth day here. This is really Phase 1 for us, so meetings and a total of an hour walkthrough on the field today goes to an hour and 15 minutes," Belichick said. "Then the players are running and lifting and doing things like that. Not on their own, but with the strength coaches. A lot of meeting time, time to get into some physical activity and training, which is good. But really we’re still in another four days of this before we start to move into Phase 2. Then a couple days of Phase 2 and a couple days of Phase 3. Then we get to the 17th. Moving a long. It’s good. Players are transitioning to a higher gear and higher volume… we’re kind of halfway through this first process."

Typically, Phase 1 is limited to strength and conditioning activities with only strength and conditioning coaches allowed on the field. A difference this year is that players and coaches can hold walkthroughs. Belichick said Thursday was the first day for that.

In Phase 2, all coaches are allowed on the field and they coach individual drills. There’s no offense vs. defense, 1-on-1 drills or helmets allowed on at this point.Phase 3 is when practices start, but players aren’t allowed to wear pads and there’s no live contact. This is what happens in OTAs and minicamp every spring. Finally, on Aug. 17 pads will come on and players will start to hit each other.

It’s a build up, but it’s something players need to do to get in the right condition before the tackling starts. The hope is that this ramp up process will limit injuries and give players time to acclimate.

"We’re being productive. We’re using the time we have to definitely make strides," Belichick said. "There are some things we can’t do but we’re not going to focus on those. We’re going to look at things we can do and try to make the most out of those. I think the players, coaches and entire organization has done a good job of that."

mdaniels@providencejournal.com

On Twitter: @MarkDanielsPJ