Phil Perry reacts to the continued fallout from Jerod Mayo calling his team “soft” following Sunday’s loss to the Jaguars and explains why he believes ownership is confident in Mayo and GM Eliot Wolf long-term.
FOXBORO -- If ever there was a time to do more, now would be it. The Patriots, sitting at 1-6, held a team meeting Thursday morning to discuss that very topic.
The fact that it needs to be said, that there needs to be a reminder to commit more time to maximize production, seems to be an indication that the team's collective mindset isn't where it should be.
And there may not be a position group on the team more representative of the still-figuring-it-out professional approach than New England's wide receivers.
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Javon Baker's lack of route detail and understanding of the offense has prevented him from contributing, offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt said earlier this season. Baker was listed on the injury report with an illness on Friday of last week and made inactive for the Jaguars game.
DeMario Douglas showed his disappointment in a lack of targets with Jacoby Brissett at quarterback then later apologized, explaining that he knew that wasn't how he should carry himself.
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Tyquan Thornton began the season as a starter -- the team understanding that it needed a speed element in its offense -- but has been a healthy scratch in recent weeks.
Ja'Lynn Polk has dealt with a bout of drops in his rookie campaign, told MassLive.com that he believes he has the best hands in the league, and then dropped two passes that hit his hands in London before leaving with a concussion. He posted a peace sign on Instagram in the immediate aftermath of the 32-16 loss to Jacksonville.
Kayshon Boutte has been a bright spot of sorts in recent weeks, catching long passes from Drake Maye in back-to-back weeks, but still expressing some exasperation that he hasn't seen more passes go his way.
"For me personally, in the game, I get frustrated when I’m not getting thrown the ball knowing that I’ve caught every ball that’s thrown to me this season," Boutte said. "I just feel like I would always go to the sideline and demand the ball. So, whether it was that deep ball – I asked for that. The Texans game, I asked for that. So, I feel like I shouldn’t have to really ask."
K.J. Osborn, meanwhile, has been touted by Van Pelt as perhaps the best leader in that position group. Which makes Osborn's commentary from Wednesday all the more eye-opening.
Asked if he wanted to be traded, he said with a laugh, "That's like an alley-oop. This is where I am. This is the place that I signed to be. A lot of things are out of my control. But I like to be where my feet are. Today I’m here. Will just kind of rock with it as it goes."
Osborn added that it was difficult to be a veteran on a team focused on developing younger players.
"It’s extremely difficult. It’s frustrating," Osborn said. "A lot of that stuff is not in my control… The organization is going to do what’s best for them. Or I would say for us."
Van Pelt was asked Thursday if he and his offensive staff needed to come together with the wideouts and get everyone on the same page.
"I think we all understand we're frustrated," Van Pelt said. "Nobody's going to be happy at 1-6. It's just the reality of it. But I think that room in particular needs to keep the focus inward. We have a big game this week, all of our focus should be on how we can get a 'W' on Sunday. This is a very good opponent coming in.
"Understanding that frustration is part of losing football, the best way to take care of that is to get a win. Our focus right now needs to solely be on the Jets because it's a challenge."
And part of focusing on the Jets game, per Van Pelt, will be focusing on their individual efforts during the week, on the field and off. The team meeting on Thursday was focused on how individuals can do more.
When asked about his young wideouts and whether or not they are doing everything they can to get themselves ready to put their best foot forward on a daily basis, Van Pelt alluded to the latest team meeting theme.
"We had a really great team meeting this morning where that was pointed out," Van Pelt said. "Obviously, at 1-6, it's not good enough across the board, any of us.
"We need to be better. We need to work harder. We need to rehab harder. We have to refresh better. We have to take care of ourselves. We have to spend more time in the room. Good meeting this morning demanding more of everybody across the board, and those guys are included."
Whether or not that meeting -- and the focus it intended to encourage -- resonated is to be determined. The Jets game will serve as indicator No. 1 as to whether or not the message landed.
