The next week of New England Patriots practice will be the final chance for players on the fringe to make an impression.
New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick looks over his practice field as quarterback Tom Brady (12) walks by during the first day of the NFL football team's training camp in Foxborough, Mass., Thursday, July 26, 2012. FOXBOROUGH – The falling sand has begun to encompass members of the New England Patriots who hope to free themselves and grasp onto a roster spot.
With three games in 10 games to close out the preseason schedule, the next week of practice will be the final chance for players on the fringe to make an impression and avoid being crushed under the weight of the hourglass.
“This is a big week. As we know, we have the opportunity with Tampa for a couple days down there before the game,” Belichick said. “Time is running out for whatever moves anybody is going to make; they have to make them.”
New England’s routine will soon become a repetitive cycle of preparing for games and reviewing them.
The Patriots play the Philadelphia Eagles at home Aug. 20 before heading to Tampa Bay to conduct joint practices with the Buccaneers prior to their Aug. 24 meeting. The team then has to cut a list of 90 names to 75 by Aug. 27.
New England will play its final preseason game in New York against the Giants Aug. 29. The final 53-man roster has to be submitted to the league two days later.
That puts players such as Springfield’s Ron Brace immediately on the spot.
The defensive tackle was one of the surprise performers in the early portion of camp, but he was recently sidelined with an injury and missed the preseason opener against the New Orleans Saints. Despite giving other players the opportunity to close the gap on him, Brace said he isn’t concerned about time slipping away from him.
“Every day I feel like I got to step it up. We’re out here for a reason, out here to get better and show that we can contribute,” Brace said. “That’s basically all I’m focusing on – trying to get better and then see about making myself a productive member of the defense.”
Brace can afford to keep a level perspective because he knows the system. For those who aren’t afforded that luxury, such as rookie cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, the ticking is likely deafening.
Dennard suffered a hamstring injury early in camp and has been forced to sit on the sidelines while the team installs its defensive sets, meaning that each day lost puts him further behind his teammates.
Last year, rookie Ras-I Dowling faced similar circumstances and was able to start the first week of the season, but it isn’t an ideal situation, especially considering that Dennard’s ability to grasp the defensive concepts in the classroom and on the sidelines could be the difference between him making the roster and becoming a free agent.
“You hate to see any player miss time. The more days they miss the further behind they fall,” Belichick said. “We just take it day to day.”
For those that don’t have to worry about winning a spot and only have to worry about preparing for the upcoming season, this week is one of the last chances to iron out the wrinkles and make things crisp.
“It’s a good opportunity for us to get a lot of things done here this week, tie up a few loose ends,” Belichick said. “We got more installation going in. Situations to cover, a lot things like that.”
“We have to get it done this week. This is big for us.”