FOXBOROUGH — As the opening chords of “Crazy Train” echoed off the empty Gillette Stadium seats, Team Blue jogged on the the field and readied for the coin toss.
With Week 1 just a couple weeks away and no preseason to prepare, Bill Belichick wanted to simulate a game for his team, so they took to the turf at 1 p.m. Friday afternoon. Cam Newton quarterbacked Team Blue while Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer split reps for Team White.
It wasn’t a real scrimmage though.
There were no pads required other than helmets, and after two weeks of heated training camp battles, a walkthrough felt far less intense.