After spending their first 11 sessions of training camp competing again themselves, the New England Patriots are getting some company: the Washington Commanders are in town for one joint practice ahead of the two teams’ preseason opener on Friday.

Here is everything you need to know about the session.

The Patriots’ first joint practice and 12th training camp session overall will take place on the practice fields behind Gillette Stadium again. As are most other sessions, it is open to the general public at no cost.

9:15 a.m. ET: Gates open9:50 a.m. ET: Dan Quinn press conference10:00 a.m. ET: Mike Vrabel press conference10:15 a.m. ET: Practiceca. 12:15 p.m. ET: Player availability (Drake Maye, Antonio Gibson, DeMario Douglas, Hunter Henry, Christian Barmore, Marcus Epps)

As always, the schedule is tentative and subject to change. For more information, please visit our Pats Pulpit Training Camp Guide.

Training camp is all about competition, but you can only get so much out of going up against the same players and scheme time and again. In that sense, the Commanders’ visit is a welcome change for the Patriots: they will get to measure their progress against another team — one that made the playoffs in 2024 — and get a first feel where they might be headed.

That is true both for the team overall and its individual players. Some, such as rookies Will Campbell or TreVeyon Henderson will get their first taste of real NFL competition. Others will get to see where they might still have room for growth under new head coach Mike Vrabel. Needless to say, Wednesday’s practice will provide plenty of data points for the team to work with.

DNP (8/5): CB Christian Gonzalez, DE K’Lavon Chaisson, LB Jahlani Tavai, OL Sidy Sow, OL Caedan Wallace, OT Morgan Moses, WR Kendrick Bourne

Wednesday’s walkthrough did not see any noteworthy changes in attendance, but three players ended up getting removed from the active roster at the end of the day. Cornerback Marcellas Dial Jr. and defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy were both sent to season-ending injured reserve — Dial jr. reportedly suffered a torn ACL — while tight end Tyler Davis was released.

In their place, the team signed running back JaMycal Hasty and defensive tackle Bryce Ganious; cornerback Tre Avery was claimed off waivers.

QB Drake Maye: Getting used to a new scheme under offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels as well as some new pieces around him, the Patriots’ starting quarterback has had some good and bad moments so far this summer. Wednesday will be a prime opportunity for him to keep weeding out those bad ones and continue growing more comfortable. It also will be a chance to go head-to-head against the QB selected one slot ahead of him in last year’s draft, Washington’s Jayden Daniels.

WR Stefon Diggs and WR DeMario Douglas: Through 11 practices, free agency pickup Stefon Diggs and third-year man DeMario Douglas continue to sit atop the wide receiver depth chart. Barring any incident, that will not change on Wednesday, but the matchup with the Commanders secondary will still give us a glimpse into how far along the two starting wideouts really are.

LT Will Campbell and LG Jared Wilson: At the moment, the Patriots are in the process of installing a rookie pair to protect Drake Maye’s blindside this season: first-rounder Will Campbell at left tackle, flanked by third-rounder Jared Wilson at left guard. That pair will face off against non-Patriots competition for the first time in their respective careers on Wednesday.

ED Harold Landry and ED K’Lavon Chaisson: With Landry and Chaisson leading the way behind Keion White, the pass rush department has performed well so far this camp. Of course, there is no telling whether that is a byproduct of an offensive line still growing into itself, or due to the quality of edge rushers available. We will get a clearer picture versus Washington.

CB Alex Austin and CB D.J. James: With Christian Gonzalez again out and Carlton Davis being eased back into the mix, the Patriots could once again rely heavily on fellow outside cornerbacks Alex Austin and D.J. James. Both have had their encouraging moments this summer, but they naturally all came against their teammates. Now, it’s time to answer the call against a Terry McLaurin-less Commanders wide receiver room.

Pats Pulpit will have you covered throughout the day, so please make sure to regularly check back to patspulpit.com for all the latest news from camp. Credentialed Patriots beat writers Brian Hines (@iambrianhines) and Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) will also bring you live updates on social media.