It hasn’t been a great offseason for the Patriots’ passing game.
New England quarterback Tom Brady and tight end Rob Gronkowski have both skipped voluntary workouts, wide receiver Julian Edelman is facing a four-game suspension, and there are also indications that wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell hasn’t recovered as quickly as hoped from last year’s knee injury.
Mitchell missed all of last season because of his knee, and ESPN reported that he hadn’t been spotted on the field during Organized Team Activities. NESN reported that Mitchell was on the field, but only off to the side doing conditioning work, not participating in the full practice.
A 2016 fourth-round pick who showed promise as a rookie, Mitchell’s knee injury seemed to linger longer than the Patriots were expecting in 2017: When they initially put him on injured reserve, there were reports that he could be designated for return later in the season, but that never happened.
Now the Patriots are still waiting for Mitchell to be a full participant. They’ll have to hope he’s good to go when the season starts in three months.