Minutes before Friday’s preseason opener in Foxboro, one team ruled out virtually all of its starters. The other did not. That is the most critical piece of context upon reviewing the Patriots’ opening exhibition of the Mike Vrabel era, a 48-18 whooping of Washington. The Patriots treated the opening few series like a regular-season game, comfortably sped to a 17-0 lead and continued to pound the Commanders while their backups took over the rest of the night. Few Patriots players, let alone positions, left the field having been truly tested, though most all of them produced good tape. “I thought this was a good place to start,” Mike Vrabel said post-game. Yes, it was. Here are the Herald’s complete film observations from Friday’s 48-18 win: It’s impossible to start better than Henderson did, running the opening kickoff back 100 yards for a touchdown. He also added three catches and one rush for 18 yards on offense. CB DJ James A top performer in training camp practices, James announced himself to the football-watching world with a second-quarter interception. He read his receiver’s route, jumped the pass and again boosted his chances of making the cut. WR Efton Chism III Chism is an undrafted rookie who saved his best for the bright lights, catching six passes for 50 yards and a touchdown. As Vrabel mentioned post-game, Chism’s play strength stood out, a nice complement to his elite quickness. QB Joshua Dobbs Dobbs sprayed errant passes all night, missing Kyle Williams for a touchdown near the goal line and multiple deep throws where receivers were open. CB Kobee Minor A seventh-round rookie, Minor missed two tackles and allowed a couple of catches. He was always a longshot to make the roster, but Friday night's performance didn't help. Offensive notes Let's start with the rookies. Left tackle Will Campbell and left guard Jared Wilson both failed to block the two-man stunt that led to Maye's sack-fumble in the first quarter. Aside from that, they allowed zero pressures and mauled Commanders defenders in the run game. Campbell, in particular, finished plays a little past the whistle, demonstrating the mean streak he was known for in college and Vrabel came to love in the draft process. His athleticism also stood out, as seen on the "crack toss" plays – where he was the lead blocker – on the opening snap of the Patriots' first two drives. TreVeyon Henderson might steal the starting running back job before we know it. He had four touches in seven offensive snaps, further evidence he will be a focal point of this offense. How about third-round rookie receiver Kyle Williams? He caught none of his four targets, but the tape showed a much better performance than the box score indicated because of the quarterback play. Joshua Dobbs, who struggled with his accuracy all night long, could have had two touchdown passes to Williams had he not thrown behind him on a slant in the first half and later been late to throw the ball to Williams' wide-open fade route before pressure arrived. Williams did have a drop on a ball thrown low and away, but overall separated on short and deep routes using a variety of releases that made him an attractive prospect ahead of the draft. Drake Maye missed veteran wideout Mack Hollins in the back of the end zone on his scramble touchdown, a play the coaching staff will surely review with him to again emphasize they want him to scramble to throw, not run. All of the Patriots' running backs ran with an edge, initiating contact on several runs that gained extra yards because of their physicality. One more rookie to mention: seventh-round offensive tackle Marcus Bryant, who logged 43 offensive snaps, second-most on the team. Bryant is in a battle with Demontrey Jacobs to become the Pats' new swing tackle. It's a bad sign for Cole Strange that Ben Brown snapped ahead of him as the team's backup center and played left guard, where Strange lost his starter job earlier this summer. Player stats Broken tackles: RB Rhamondre Stevenson 2, RB TreVeyon Henderson 2, RB Lan Larison 2, WR Efton Chism III 2, WR Jeremiah Webb 2, WR John Jiles Drops: WR Kyle Williams, WR Javon Baker Sacks allowed: OG Jared Wilson (half), OT Will Campbell (half) QB hits allowed: OT Demontrey Jacobs 2 Hurries allowed: OG Mike Onwenu, OG Cole Strange, OT Marcus Bryant, OG Layden Robinson, C Alec Lindstrom, OG Mekhi Butler Run stuffs allowed: Team 3, OL Jack Conley Defensive notes More pressure, better tackling and stronger edge-setting. For a defense that only allowed 18 points, there will be plenty to pick on from this game for Vrabel and the coaching staff. Starting with the good: defensive tackle Khyris Tonga carried over his pass-rushing success in practice to the preseason with two pressures, and the young corners (Alex Austin and DJ James) both impressed. For a defensive line now abiding by an attack-at-all-times philosophy, the Patriots reacted well to misdirection and space plays; two common counters to their style of defense. That said, zero sacks, one QB hit and a handful of pressures against a team that sat its starters and dropped back to pass more than 40 times is not good enough. Outside linebacker Truman Jones, who played in the first and fourth quarters, tied for the team lead with two pressures, but also lost the edge on a long Commanders run in the second half. He is fighting for a backup roster spot among the edge defenders. Jones also missed a tackle, as did veteran safety Kyle Dugger, who's had a down summer. Dugger still looks a half-step slow from the last time we saw him fully healthy, and is not suited for a scheme that will task him with more 1-on-1 coverage. Jaylinn Hawkins, on the other hand, thrived with his play recognition. He, Dugger and Jabrill Peppers all rotated into the free safety role during snaps of single-high coverage. More scheme notes: lots of man-to-man coverage and five-man zone pressures sending a blitzer from the slot or at inside linebacker. Rookie safety Craig Woodson tallied one pressure this way. Without Christian Gonzalez, Christian Barmore, Carlton Davis and K'Lavon Chaisson and others, it's impossible to project yet how this defense will look come Week 1. However next week's joint practices in Minnesota, when Gonzalez might return, should offer a telling glimpse. Player stats Pass breakups: CB DJ James, S Jordan Polk Pass breakups: CB Marcus Jones, CB Miles Battle QB hits: DL Keion White Hurries: DL Joshua Farmer 2, DL Khyris Tonga , DL Keion White, DL Jeremiah Pharms Jr., OLB Truman Jones, OLB Elijah Ponder, S Craig Woodson Run stuffs: Team 3, OLB Anfernee Jennings Missed tackles: S Jordon Polk 2, CB Kobee Minor 2, R.J. Moten, S Kyle Dugger, LB Christian Elliss, CB Brandon Crossley, LB Monty Rice, Jones, Woodson Special teams Nice night for Javon Baker, the former fourth-round pick who tallied two special teams tackles after not playing on kick and punt coverage teams last year. Baker had to learn to tackle recently, and started opposite Brenden Schooler as the Patriots' new gunner in place of Marcellas Dial Jr. (torn ACL). Undrafted rookie edge rusher Elijah Ponder started on the kickoff, kick return and punt return teams, a great sign for his roster chances. He also had an outstanding block on Henderson's kick return touchdown. Three other core special teamers: Schooler, linebacker Jack Gibbens and safety Jaylinn Hawkins.