FOXBOROUGH, Mass — Romeo Doubs' first game with the New England Patriots was not what he or the fan base expected. And with that, it led to a lot of conversation, with much of the online chatter doubting whether this was a good signing for the team this offseason.
However, he quickly shut down all those conversations with his performance in the second game, finishing with three receptions on four targets for 96 total yards.
"I love seeing guys be able to bounce back from a difficult or disappointing outing, but that's the NFL," wide receivers coach Todd Downing said. "There are going to be games at wide receiver where you don't get main targets, or you don't capitalize on an opportunity you wish you would have. And the great ones bounce back the next
week. I think Romeo did a really nice job of doing that and made the most of his opportunities in Week 2. And hopefully, we can build on that for some consistency.
"He stays hungry to improve. I think he's done a really nice job of adjusting to A.J. being out and playing some different roles, some stuff that he hasn't done since OTAs, and he's really been committed to coming in, spending extra time, and trying to hone back in on some of those other skills."
Josh McDaniels shared similar thoughts, explaining that it's not always the easiest to come into a new offense.
“He’s in a good place and I thought Rome really stepped up and made some positive things happen the other day,” McDaniels said. “I think anytime a player changes venues like Romeo has, there’s always going to be a period of acclimation and he’s getting acclimated to the players. He’s getting acclimated to the terminology. He’s getting acclimated to his coaches, our style, how we use him.
“And sometimes as coaches, we want to use all the strengths and all the skills that these guys all have. So you want to try to do a million things with them at the beginning. I think one of the things we can do is try to focus on some of the things that he does well and then we’ll add as we go. I think we’ve kind of started to take that approach... I love his attitude. I love this player and I think he’s got a really bright future here for us, and he’s going to do a lot of good things for us.”
Doubs' dropped catch in the season opener was something that was the subject of a lot of conversation. But as Mike Vrabel explicitly said numerous times, it was something that was blown up much more in the media when receivers drop passes.
It's about what happens after that that says the most about them.
"It's great because it's like, those types of dudes, you want to see them thrive," receiver Kyle Williams told Patriots Wire. "I've always wanted to see Romeo thrive since we were playing with the same seven-on-seven team. So that's just great. From Week 1 to Week 2, I always say it's hiccups. With humans, we make those mistakes. Everybody in every profession has had a hiccup at some point in their career, so it just comes with it. It's all about how you bounce back, and I feel like he bounced back good. And I feel like that just uplifted his confidence to a different level."
"He's a great player. He knows it. We know it," Efton Chism echoed. "I think everyone knows it. And sometimes the things just didn't go the way he wanted it to. But I think we all have so much faith and so much trust that he's going to do out there and keep dominating each week."
"Yeah, he's been growing. He's been gaining more confidence in the plays. Feels like he did a great job of playing the next play, going into the next game," DeMario Douglas expressed. "He had zero catches in the first game, and in the second game, I forget how many catches, but 90-something yards. So that's how you do it. That's how you do it in this league."
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Patriots WR Romeo Doubs earns high praise after a strong bounce-back
