New England Patriots Rookies Learning the Ropes Under Veteran Supervision

The New England Patriots wrapped up three consecutive days of player-organized workouts last Friday.

While the workouts were intended to be closed to the media and the public, much was observed from the outskirts of Boston College's Alumni Stadium. More than 40 players participated in the workouts which mimicked a normal mini-camp practice.

Many of the Patriots' selections in April's Draft were in attendance as was noted by Greg Bedard and Shalise Manza Young of the Boston Globe.

On multiple occasions veteran position players were seen working with the rookies. Manza Young reported seeing first-year phenom Devin McCourty working one-on-one with Patriots' second round pick, cornerback Ras-I Dowling, offering the rookie some instruction.

Manza Young also recalled an interesting conversation she had with a few other observers.

She explained that multiple BC football players had gathered to watch the Patriots' practice and a few even offered scouting reports on one of New England's most recent picks.

One of the players reportedly told Manza Young that Dowling would be a real steal for the Patriots. The players remembered him from their games against Virginia and while they certainly aren't professional scouts it's nice to hear some kind words thrown in the direction of this draft class.

Bedard made some noteworthy observations of his own. He reported seeing Benjarvus Green-Ellis, Danny Woodhead and even free agent Kevin Faulk helping rookies Shane Vereen and Stevan Ridley through plays.

Green-Ellis knows these guys are only here to help and he's all for helping out.

"Everybody's working hard," Green-Ellis told Bedard. "We're all working hard towards the same goal."

Other rookies who were spotted in attendance include 17th overall selection Nate Solder, who was spotted chatting with Tom Brady for a bit during the practices. Third-rounder Ryan Mallett was also in attendance, impressing many of his fellow teammates with a 65-yard bomb to Mathew Slater at one point.

Interested in reading more by this Featured Columnist? Check out more of Aaron's work on Bleacher Report and on SportsHaze.com/Boston.

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