Patriots training camp Day 4: Drake Maye’s bumpy A.J. Brown chemistry, Kayshon Boutte stars

FOXBORO — Drake Maye has targeted A.J. Brown 10 times so far in full-team drills.

Just three of those passes have resulted in completions.

Cause for concern? Not yet.

Officially time to worry? Hardly.

Something to note? You bet.

The contrast downfield has been particularly striking between Maye’s passes for Brown and those intended for Kayshon Boutte, who has been a highlight machine. Boutte has snared a deep ball in all three full-speed practices this summer. His latest catch, a go route where he zipped 40-plus yards downfield and straight by safety Kevin Byard III, was an easy touchdown.

Boutte has unquestionably been the most dangerous receiver in camp, even as he often comes off the bench behind Brown, Romeo Doubs and slot man DeMario Douglas during team drills. As for Maye, he also had success finding Hunter Henry and Rhamondre Stevenson on deeper throws late in practice. But his new No. 1 receiver? Brown was limited to a pair of catches underneath on a return route and a short in-cut, while Maye overshot him on a deep crossing route, couldn’t find him on a comeback and missed wide on a go route, where miscommunication may have factored.

Elsewhere, two rookie tight ends stepped up, two veteran cornerbacks went down, Andy Borregales missed his first field goal of training camp and the pass rush heated up.

Here are the Herald’s complete practice observations:

Attendance

Returned: N/A

Absent: N/A

Limited: RB Rhamondre Stevenson, CB Carlton Davis, CB Charles Woods,

PUP: OLB Harold Landry, TE CJ Dippre

NFI: OLB Gabe Jacas, S Brenden Schooler, RB Terrell Jennings

Notes: Davis left the field early in the initial 7-on-7 period. His replacement, Woods, exited with both arms around team trainers during 11-on-11s. Their absences left the Patriots awfully thin at cornerback. Stevenson was a full participant right up until final sprints for reasons unknown.

At the start of practice, the team had no new absences and a second straight day of perfect attendance with active players. Jacas was on the field and observed in street clothes, while Landry appeared later on, rode a stationary bike and pushed a blocking sled.

Play of the Day

Kayshon Boutte goes deep

It was at least 40 yards. Maybe 50.

From a cozy pocket, Maye lofted the ball deep down the right-side numbers, and watched Boutte sail through loose zone coverage. Boutte tracked the ball expertly over his left shoulder and caught it in front of the nearest defender, Byard, then held the ball out with two arms outstretched as they crossed into the end zone.

Touchdown.

New England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte catches a pass during the team’s NFL training camp, Tuesday, July 28, 2026, in Foxboro. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Player of the Day

WR Kayshon Boutte

In addition to his go-route touchdown, Boutte caught all three of his other targets in team drills.

Boutte made a sliding catch over the middle to save a Maye completion in the opening 7-on-7 period. He also pocketed another catch at the end of a deep out route working with Tommy DeVito, who found him earlier on an out route. The diversity of Boutte’s route tree is encouraging for a player who was often a one-trick pony last year — granted, an explosive one at that — and must build out his game to move back up the depth chart.

QB Corner

Note: The passing stats below were tallied during competitive 11-on-11 periods only. The stats in parentheses represent the quarterbacks’ camp-long performance.

Drake Maye: 10-of-13 (22-of-34, INT, sack)

Tommy DeVito: 8-of-10 (17-of-24, sack)

Behren Morton: 2-of-4 (10-for-16)

Notes: Over the first 7-on-7 drill of training camp, Maye overthrew Brown on a deep crossing route, hit Efton Chism III in the flat, threw high, wide and incomplete for Douglas running a corner route and snuck an intermediate pass into a sliding Boutte over the middle. Next, he completed two passes at out-routes run by Douglas and Brown around an incomplete checkdown intended for Stevenson.

In 11-on-11s, Maye couldn’t connect with Brown on a comeback route and threw well wide on a go ball down the right sideline also intended for Brown. Stuck at 4-of-9, Maye found a rhythm with a swing pass to TreVeyon Henderson, a flip into the flat for Douglas and a perfectly placed deep pass for Boutte. Another middle completion for Douglas followed, then Brown underneath and a misfire intended for Henderson. Maye later finished with long completions to Henry on a corner route, Stevenson down the left sideline and a short throw for Brown.

Studs

QB Tommy DeVito

DeVito was aggressive, accurate and generous today, hitting six different receivers on his first six completions. He did take one would-be sack, but otherwise was the most consistent quarterback on the field.

TE Eli Raridon

Nice day from the rookie. Raridon took snaps with the starting and second-team offenses and totaled three grabs, his most in a single practice this summer. His best was a contested catch on a deep crossing route against backup safety Dell Pettus.

Duds

CB Marcus Jones

Jones allowed three receptions in team drills, including a deep ball to Henry at the end of a long corner route. Brown and Douglas also beat him for catches.

WR A.J. Brown

Brown and Maye are not yet on the same page, some of which could be put on the quarterback. But for the receiver who shared he’s already been “ripped” in a team meeting and knows 90% of the playbook, he gets the blame here.

Offensive notes

New England Patriots wide receiver DeMario Douglas looks for the catch during training camp at Gillette Stadium on Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (Photo By Matt Stone/Boston Herald)

Top targets in team drills: WR A.J. Brown 3/6, WR Kayshon Boutte 4/4, WR DeMario Douglas 3/4, TE Hunter Henry 2/4

Drops: N/A

Top offensive line: LT Will Campbell, LG Alijah Vera-Tucker, C Jared Wilson, RG Mike Onwenu, RT Morgan Moses

Running backs

• Rhamondre Stevenson led off most team periods, and flashed a complete skill set over practice.
• Stevenson’s long catch with Christian Elliss in coverage came a few snaps after he stepped in to block a disguised blitz to Maye’s right, which gave Maye enough time to strike for an explosive play with Hunter Henry.
• TreVeyon Henderson caught one of two targets and ripped a long run off the left side working behind the second-team offensive line. He’s looked most comfortable reading out zone-blocking.
• Second-year back Lan Larison repped ahead of rookie Jam Miller, his chief competition for the No. 3 job until Terrell Jennings returns off the Non-Football Injury list. Miller saw one target, an inaccurate pass from Tommy DeVito, while Larison took a small step back in practice.
  New England Patriots wide receiver Mack Hollins reaches for the ball during training camp at Gillette Stadium on Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (Photo By Matt Stone/Boston Herald)

Wide receivers

• Again, the Patriots’ top three-receiver grouping featured A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs and DeMario Douglas. Interestingly, the offense has also featured every possible pairing from that trio at various times within two-back or two-tight end personnel, meaning Douglas is not always in the slot.
• Douglas is, however, the most consistently available of those three. The Patriots are stretching his usage and route tree more than in recent years. Doubs, meanwhile, has already had a practice without a catch in team periods, and Brown’s downfield struggles are noteworthy.
• The spotty connection between Brown and Maye should firm up in time, but the degrees to which Maye missed on deeper targets suggests more than bad luck is at play; be it poor communication, missed route details or adjustments.
• Though all were quick-hitters, two of Brown’s catches did show the separation and/or run-after-catch skills the Patriots are hoping helps elevate their offense.
• Kayshon Boutte is first off the bench and still rotating in primarily as the “X” receiver, while Brown and/or Doubs move around him.
• Mack Hollins caught both of his targets from DeVito, but he’s occasionally repped with the starting offense, including in the slot.
• Efton Chism III remains ahead of 2025 third-round pick Kyle Williams, whose only catch was on a shallow cross.

Tight ends

• Hunter Henry returned to full participation, though he was hardly the only tight end to play with the starting offense.
• Rookies Eli Raridon and Tanner Arkin, an undrafted free agent, both took snaps next to Maye. Their receiving production reflected their likely roles for this season: Raridon, a greater pass-catching threat, had three catches in team drills, while Arkin was often involved on run plays as the stronger, more physical player.
• Raridon’s ability to win at the catch point will be critical to staying on the field, so it had to be encouraging for the staff to see his first grab be a contested catch over muscled-up safety Dell Pettus on a crossing route.
• Historically under Josh McDaniels, the Patriots have cross-trained their fullbacks with the tight ends. In this spirit, new fullback Reggie Gilliam had one catch and was featured with all three offensive units as a lead blocker.

Offensive line

• Morgan Moses again started at right tackle and, like Henry, was utilized in a rotation. Moses, first-round rookie Caleb Lomu and veteran castoff James Hudson III all took reps at the position while blocking for Maye.
• Lomu spent most of practice with the second-team offense and got away with a hold against Elijah Ponder on a play that resulted in a Maye completion to Brown.
• Moses appeared to be whistled for a false start during 11-on-11s in the face of an approaching blitzer when the play was blown dead.
• Zooming out, Moses and right guard Mike Onwenu both bear watching as the Patriots embrace a more up-tempo offense this season. Moses is the oldest of the group at 35, while Onwenu is far heavier than his line mates and has reportedly had weight issues in the past.
• On the other hand, if not for Kayshon Boutte, Alijah Vera-Tucker might have a claim to being the best offensive player in camp. The Patriots’ new left guard has moved exceptionally well and generated good push in the run game.
• The Patriots’ pass protection has pleasantly surprised early in camp, but the pockets were more crowded Tuesday, especially with edge pressure. Will Campbell and Moses both had moments where they allowed rushers close to Maye. Overall, though, Campbell is much steadier than he was a year ago.
• The second-team offensive line cleared room for a couple of long runs, where second-year tackle Marcus Bryant and third-year guard Caedan Wallace were at the point of attack.
• From left to right, the second-team offensive line for most of practice consisted of Bryant, Wallace, Ben Brown, Andrew Rupcich and Lomu.

Defensive notes

Interceptions: N/A

Pass breakups: LB Christian Elliss

Would-be sacks: DL Cory Durden (1.5 sacks), OLB Elijah Ponder, OLB Bradyn Swinson (half-th asack)

New England Patriots linebacker Elijah Ponder during training camp at Gillette Stadium on Tuesday, July 28, 2026. (Photo By Matt Stone/Boston Herald)

Defensive linemen

• Milton Williams had a few hurries and worked from wider alignments, particularly when the Patriots played heavier personnel.
• Williams also went down for a brief period after getting run-blocked in 11-on-11s, but stayed on the field and continued to practice.
• Cory Durden earned a would-be sack of Tommy DeVito on an inside rush and then a half-sack later cleaning up pressure off the edge.
• Durden was also credited with a batted pass by other reporters in the media tent, though it was unclear from this view who got a hand on Drake Maye’s attempt.
• Joshua Farmer looks poised to seize the No. 4 defensive tackle job, though the upcoming padded practices will decide how the depth behind Williams, Durden and Christian Barmore will shake out.

Linebackers

• Elijah Ponder, have a day. He was a regular disruptor off the edge with a would-be sack and drawn hold. He continues to start in place of the injured Harold Landry.
• Inside linebacker Christian Elliss broke up a checkdown for Rhamondre Stevenson over the short middle during team drills, but got victimized by Stevenson later on a deep completion.
• Robert Spillane has not been tested nearly as often in coverage this summer, but is often involved in disguised blitzes that often key the Patriots’ third-down package.
• Perhaps Bradyn Swinson’s best practice of the summer in terms of pressure created, though the young outside linebackers behind him were quiet.

Defensive backs

• Calling all cornerbacks! The Patriots are suddenly dangerously thin at corner without Carlton Davis and/or Charles Woods for unknown periods of time.
• Expect to see more of Kindle Vildor until one or both return. He replaced Woods after the injury, and fifth-round rookie Karon Prunty should also see more reps.
• Christian Gonzalez, however, was a full participant again. His only allowed catch in 11-on-11s was to Brown on a pick play with crisscrossing routes, where he got held up in traffic.
• Not a great day for starting safeties Kevin Byard III and Craig Woodson, who were beaten for big plays.

Special teams

• Kicker Andy Borregales went 5-of-6 on field goals he attempted between 33 and 50 yards. His lone miss came after a low snap, and sailed wide left from 45 yards out.
• Borregales is 11-of-12 now in training camp, and said he spent his offseason more focused on accuracy and power.
• Running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Lan Larison lined up as the team’s top kick returners. The Patriots did not practice any live kickoffs.

Extra points

• Patriots Hall of Fame assistant coach Dante Scarnecchia attended Tuesday’s practice.
• Players are off Wednesday for the first time since the start of training camp.
• The Patriots will hold their fifth training camp practice Thursday at 10:15 a.m. Fan admission and parking are free unless practice is moved indoors, at which point it would be closed to the public. The Patriots will provide updates on their website.