Postcard from Camp: Replacement referees show up

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WHAT WE SAW
DAY13: New wrinkle on Monday. The full pads practice was held in the morning and the players had just a little afternoon film and classroom work in the evening. It was the first time the padded practice was held in the a.m. This was practice No. 9.

WEATHER
Warm, Dry. Clear. Freakin' perfect.

WHAT THEY WOREFullpads.

WHAT THEY DID9:00-9:45: The same walkthrough, stretching, positionalstretching, positional drills that they always do. 9:45: 7-on-7 drills
10:00: Special teams (onsides kicks)10:15: 11-on-11 (drilling off Saints offensive sets; switch and work on Saints defensive sets)

WHAT WE SAW
Referees on the field. Three of them. And they were replacement refs since the real stripes are on strike. Or locked out. Or whatever. They're not working. Worst-case scenario will be if these officials aren't appreciably worse than the lamentably inconsistent crews they're replacing. And that's a possibility that hasn't been entertained enough.

Sergio Brown had a nice practice, earning praise at different junctures from Bill Belichick for his special teams and safety work.

Alex Silvestro, the newly christened tight end, got stuck hard by Malcolm Williams in a 1-on-1 tackling drill.

Offensive lineman Nick McDonald was in full pads for the first time. James Ihedigbo, who was in a full-contact jersey for the first time Sunday, was in shorts and a t-shirt on Monday. Brandon Spikes wasn't at practice either.

Visanthe Shiancoe, Daniel Fells, Myron Pryor, Alfonzo Dennard and Jonathan Fanene didn't practice.

WHO'S HOT
Sergio Brown. Good kid. Seemed to have his first solid practice of camp.

Malcolm Williams. The seventh round pick in 2011 made a few solid plays and has flashed more frequently at defensive back the past few days.

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