FOXBORO, Mass. (WPRI) — The Patriots’ preseason continues Friday night as they play the Panthers at home.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on The CW Providence.
The two teams held joint practices earlier this week which were marred by multiple fights that broke out, including one on Wednesday that injured a fan. Several players were kicked off the field as a result.
Second-year QB Mac Jones and the first-team offense are expected to get some reps after sitting out the team’s first preseason game against the Giants.
The Patriots had been struggling on that side of the ball as they install a new offensive system, but they showed noticeable progress at practice this week.
Jones appears to be growing into his role as a leader on the team and taking ownership of the offense.
“I think we laid our foundation of what we want to do and what the coaches want to do,” Jones said. “We’ve definitely bought into that. There’s things that I’ve done in the past. There are things that I like, and we’re trying to incorporate them more, or things that Coach Belichick sees on film he’s like, ‘Hey, what do you think about this?’ So it’s very fluid and for them to be able to take some of our thoughts is really important.”
“I think the really good offenses in the NFL, you can tell that the play-callers and the quarterback are on the same page,” he continued. “I think we’re getting there and that’s the progress we need, and I’ve been really pleased with that.”
The Patriots will wrap up their preseason next Friday on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders.
