Terrance Mitchell has been one of the early surprises at training camp, with the New England Patriots cornerback spending team drills on the field with last year’s starters in the secondary: Devin McCoury, Kyle Dugger, Jalen Mills, etc.
Mitchell has simply clicked, perhaps even more than cornerback Malcolm Butler, who has not been brilliant in his return to the Patriots amid a comeback from retirement. There isn’t any clearcut reason why Mitchell, set to make just $1.75 million in 2022, has been such a great fit. He doesn’t have familiarity with the defense and the 30-year-old hasn’t been a standout with any other NFL team.
But there was one thing that stood out about his acclimation process in New England. He said Friday that he thinks the organization is “chill.”
That’s not a word players typically use to describe Bill Belichick and The Patriot Way. Intense, detail-oriented, obsessive — those are the words we’ve grown accustomed to hearing.
“Real cool. Nice and chill,” Mitchell said.
That’s a first. How so?
“It’s just a family atmosphere, so it’s just all love. Just a great situation,” he said with a big smile.
Terrance Mitchell, who is enjoying a strong start to camp, cracked me up when he said it’s “nice and chill” with the Patriots. I’ve never heard that one before. pic.twitter.com/SAuVmmQaWY
— Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis) July 29, 2022
In 2021, Mitchell played for the Houston Texans, whose general manager Nick Caserio has established a culture that’s somewhat similar to New England. But Mitchell didn’t see the overlap.
“Nah, there’s only one New England Patriots,” he said. “It’s just championship football. It’s a dynasty. It’s just greatness around here, so that’s what they expect from us.”
It’s early in camp, so it’s not the time to crown Mitchell as the likely starter. (I recently projected that it will be a rotation.) But he has clearly gotten more quality reps than Butler and Jack Jones. Those two will compete with Mitchell and Mills for the starting spots on the outside.
The real evaluation will begin on Monday when the pads go on, which will level the playing field between offense and defense. To his point, the offense has had a distinct advantage, without having to withstand contact (limiting a defensive back’s press capabilities) — and with the cornerbacks wearing mittens (to prevent them from grabbing jerseys). Despite that, Mitchell has not seen many targets, a testament to his strong play.
“(Mitchell) has been in a couple of different defensive systems,” Belichick said Thursday. “Some of the things we’re asking him to do are a little bit different, but he’s adapted well. He’s smart, he’s experienced, he’s a good instinctive player and he’s had some good production through the opportunities while we’ve been here, and understanding what those are and aren’t.”
