Shoulder pads enter the mix for third practice

On day one of practice, the theme was mostly to get a feel of where guys were and see how they progress as camp rolls along. Monday in the third practice of camp, shoulder pads entered the mix, along with a light amount of contact.

There's still obviously plenty to keep an eye and position battles to be won throughout camp, but there are still observations to be had. So here's what I spotted on Monday...

• Alex Wheat looked okay when camp opened on Friday. Monday, Wheat looked like the best of all the wideouts. He's practicing hard, catching balls, and even made a few very eye-opening catches in one-on-one drills against the cornerbacks. Much like how Rashard Stewart was the my star of Friday's practice, I'd dub Wheat as Monday's overall standout.
• Speaking of Rashard Stewart, he was still awesome. If Tay Glover-Wright can beat him out for the other starting spot, that will be one hell of a set of top three corners. If not, the Lawson-Stewart combo should still be absolutely fantastic.
• All of the quarterbacks looked a lot more dialed in today compared to Friday. The enigma of the bunch so far to me is Jeff Manning. Without pressure on him, he throws a really nice ball, has good size and solid mobility. Put a D-line in pursuit of him, and it seems like everything gets tipped at the line. His potential is still excellent, but he's certainly taking his lumps still after a year in the program. Like I've said all along, stay tuned on this kid.
• Back at wide receiver, Travis Reynolds went all Travis Reynolds on a pair of plays. On one, he ran a great route, catching a ball perfectly in stride, beating the defensive back for a touchdown. It was gorgeous! Right after that, he drops a five-yard pass over the middle that hit him right where it needed to be. If he can catch the ball consistently, he's going to be great. He does pretty much everything else well, but those drops come frustratingly often.
• D.J. Tialavea made a diving catch in the end zone that would put to rest any concerns people might have about his pass-catching ability.
• JoJo Natson made his fair share of catches too. He's looking like he'll be a very solid contributor to the receiving game.
• We know Joe Hill is going to be a stud, but who will perform behind him has been a concern. Rashad Hall is looking to be picking things up quickly and could turn into a very quality addition to that group.
• The offense seemed to be really struggling at getting things done against the defense in team drills. I think this speaks a little bit as to how the offense still needs to find itself a little bit, but more to the caliber of this defense. They're so big, so fast, so experienced... It's a unit that won't give up many points at all this year.

That's all for now. Likely going to watch again on Tuesday, so stay tuned for that recap.