New England Patriots rookie tight end Eli Raridon emerged as one of quarterback Drake Maye‘s favorite crunch-time targets during Friday’s training camp scrimmage that featured two teams: white and blue.
The Notre Dame product was grouped with Maye on the white team. Although the squad fell short 22-15, the third-round draft selection caught back-to-back passes from his quarterback to open a two-minute drill, which set up a successful Andy Borregales field goal attempt.
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When asked about how the rookie was adapting to the speed of the NFL earlier this offseason, Mike Vrabel said he’d rather players make mistakes while playing fast than hesitate because of overthinking.
That philosophy has helped Raridon play faster and become a more consistent contributor.
“Yeah, I feel like this is kind of a new mentality coach Vrabel is installing in us, and it’s been great,” Raridon said on Friday. “It’s helping me play fast, and a lot of helping you play fast is knowing what to do on offense. That’s been getting easier for me. So, because of that mentality [and] me being able to process information, I’ve been able to play faster.”
Raridon hauled in three receptions from Maye throughout the scrimmage. The first was a deep connection up the seam on a block-and-release play-action assignment that re-ignited a once stagnant offense and led to the white team’s first touchdown score.
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Before that gain, Maye was one of six on his passing attempts.
“I feel like every day is starting to get better, and I definitely feel like I’m improving,” Raridon said about his comfort level with the playbook. “A lot of that is due to the comfortability I’m having in the offense. So, every day is getting easier because the offense is starting to seep into my brain a little bit.”
The 22-year-old also credited New England‘s coaching staff as a primary reason why he’s grown more acclimated to the offense.
“I think a lot of it is the coaching,” Raridon added. “I’ve had really good coaches here. [Tight ends coach Thomas Brown] and coach Vrabel have done a great job of getting on me and [helping] me improve. We’re meeting a lot here [at training camp] and processing a lot of information and learning a lot. That requires me to study outside of being at the facility. So the studying has helped, the coaching I’ve been having has helped and just every day it starts to get easier.”
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Next week, the Patriots will host the Indianapolis Colts for a joint practice on Tuesday before Raridon is slated to make his NFL preseason debut in Thursday’s matchup between the two franchises.
While the rookie is uncertain what nerves he’ll feel before the contest, Raridon said he’s going to approach it like every other game he’s played.
“I’m excited to compete against other teams,” Raridon said. “It’s fun to compete against my guys, but I’m ready to take the field with them and be part of a team and compete with other teams.”
