Patriots
“That is one thing to be taught from. Each time I get again in there, I’m going to make it depend.”
Demario Douglas is used to drawing a crowd of microphones and cameras throughout his quick time up to now in Foxborough.
The 2023 sixth-round pick of Liberty has seen his inventory soar since stepping onto the follow fields behind Gillette Stadium, going from an early roster-bubble candidate to a helpful cog in Invoice O’Brien’s reworked offensive scheme.
Little has deterred Douglas’s meteoric stand up the depth chart over the previous couple of months.
However Sunday’s media scrum took on a distinct tone for the affable and gifted rookie.
For the primary time in his transient NFL profession, Douglas needed to face the music after a pricey play — one which planted him on the sidelines for the rest of Sunday’s 24-17 loss to the Dolphins.
Douglas was featured commonly throughout New England’s first two drives of the night time, with the rookie focused twice by Mac Jones on his six snaps in opposition to Miami.
However his final play resulted in catastrophe.
On a third-and-8 sequence on Miami’s 39-yard-line, Douglas reeled in a catch from Jones for the primary down. However the shifty wideout — seeing additional yardage in entrance of him — made a fast reduce and reset himself for a rush up the gridiron.
However as Douglas noticed a possible first NFL landing in entrance of him, Dolphins linebacker Bradley Chubb ran up behind him and punched the pigskin from his grasp. Miami recovered the fumble and finally scored on the following possession to offer the guests a 10-0 lead within the second quarter.
“After I turned to go to the proper, I noticed the tip zone and I sort of bought excited,” Douglas mentioned postgame. “I forgot concerning the folks coming from behind and simply pulled my arm and let the ball go.”
It was a painful lesson for the rookie, one that each younger participant learns in some unspecified time in the future as they navigate their method via the professional ranks.
Making it again to the sidelines, Douglas sat on the bench and clutched a soccer given to him by veteran Ty Montgomery — an indication of each atonement and want to place the miscue within the rearview mirror.
“I simply bought to go forward and play the subsequent play,” Douglas mentioned. “Had that mindset already. … Simply the vets coming and inform me, ‘Play the subsequent play, it’s all going to be good.’ That was positively comforting.”
Finally, no subsequent play was out there for Douglas for the rest of the night time.
Regardless of fielding a number of punts rather than an injured Marcus Jones, Douglas didn’t log one other offensive snap in New England’s irritating loss to Miami.
Douglas acknowledged that he was not knowledgeable that his offensive snaps have been finished for the remainder of the night time.
“Offense was coming again,” Douglas mentioned of sitting on the skin wanting in at reps. “I can’t … it’s time for me to only be on the sideline and lift everyone else up.”
Douglas famous that ball safety stays the “No. 1” focus within the wake of Sunday’s loss, and was the clear cause behind his sudden drop in performs on offense.
Nonetheless, given New England’s prolonged lulls on offense till a spirited fourth-quarter comeback, the absence of an efficient route-runner and explosive expertise like Douglas does loom over New England’s now-winless begin to the 2023 marketing campaign.
“For certain. Most positively,” Douglas mentioned of eager to get again within the recreation. “To come back again in … I consider I might have made a distinction. However the offense did a great job, they have been transferring that ball.”
Invoice Belichick didn’t supply a lot when it comes to his choice to reduce Douglas’s snaps following his pricey fumble.
“Look, we had numerous manufacturing on offense,” Belichick mentioned. “[DeVante] Parker had a great day. [Mike] Gesicki had a great day. Hunter [Henry] had a great day, JuJu [Smith-Schuster], KB [Kendrick Bourne]. So, , numerous good gamers. Can’t play everyone.”
The 5-foot-8 wideout may need a problem in entrance of him relating to getting out of Belichick’s doghouse and regaining a number of the belief he cast in the course of the summer season.
However Douglas is aware of full effectively what he must do to start out that climb.
“For me, ball safety. I really feel like this may positively assist me,” Douglas mentioned. “Simply know the velocity of the sport, everyone is coming to that ball. So I do know, for me, I simply want to ensure my consciousness is excessive.”
The rookie added: “We’re going to see. I follow onerous. That is one thing to be taught from. Each time I get again in there, I’m going to make it depend.”
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