If you haven't heard the reports already, Sunday's Training Camp was at capacity with roughly 2,000 fans in attendance, and it was obvious. Once I found my spot along the sideline, I didn't move for the two and a half hours I was observing camp.
I was okay with staying put because I had a great vantage point for the afternoon, but I also had to sacrifice the ability to watch some drills as closely as I'd like to.
Fortunately, our own Brennan Warner had a bird's eye view and captured some great overhead video that I was unable to manage in my predicament. As much as I wanted to get an overhead view of the Oklahoma Drill or 11-on-11 drills, I knew that I had the advantage of getting some great photos of my own to share with you all. Before I unveil today's photo gallery, however, I want to go over a few takeaways from Sunday's practice:
- As you may already know, today was the first day of full pads and full contact. The dull thud of pads colliding on the field made the afternoon feel more like football season than ever.
- The offense wasn't clicking as well as it was on Saturday. Credit the output by the defense this afternoon. A lot of plays were broken up, and there were several occasions when any given quarterback was hesitating in the pocket when his targets weren't immediately emerging on the field.
- Andrew Hawkins was once again a complete mismatch for anyone facing him during 1-on-1 drills. The match I personally witnessed involved Leon Hall. If Hawkins isn't getting jammed at the line, he's already beaten you.
- Speaking of Andrew Hawkins, he received a huge ovation from fans and players after facing Terence Newman in the Oklahoma drill and coming out on top.
- Tyrone Goard leveling Dre Kirkpatrick in the Oklahoma drill created a frenzy in the stands, but it was Shawn Williams beating out Roy Roundtree with ease that created an absolute riot with players and fans.
- Domata Peko unsurprisingly gets the nod for the best moment of Fan Outreach. After grabbing a Gatorade from a cooler on the sidelines, he grabbed an extra one to hand to a young fan that was watching him -- hopefully Mike Brown isn't reading this. I'll include a picture of the moment in the gallery at the end of this article.
- Rex Burkhead continues to be one my Unsung Heroes of camp. Every time he has the ball he impresses. Sunday was no exception. He isn't a flashy player, but he definitely plays for smash-mouth football.
- Giovani Bernard continued to get looks in the passing game, and BenJarvus Green-Ellis stood out more than he did on Saturday with a few big runs.
- Dre Kirkpatrick was pacing the sidelines more than any other player. I'm not sure how I felt about him constantly floating back and forth. On one hand, Kirkpatrick could have just felt some anxiety as he looks toward his first full training camp in good health. There were a few plays that he was visibly upset with himself over as he would walk back to the sidelines. On the other hand, I was concerned he wasn't focusing on what was happening on the field as much as his teammates. Perhaps an entire offseason of watching his team practice in 2012 has led to him wanting to be out on the field more. Either way, there were times I wanted to see him talking more with his teammates and coaches.
Jay Gruden and Hue Jackson share a laugh as Mike Brown photobombs another one of my pictures.
Domata Peko hands a Gatorade to a young fan on the sidelines.
Jay Gruden during Sunday's practice.
Taylor Mays speaking with coaches on the sideline.
Carlos Dunlap watches his team on the field.
A.J. Green and Mohamed Sanu share a moment on the sidelines.
Geno.