Report: Fleming focused on guard work during training

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With the NFL Draft less than two weeks away, those of us in the media that follow the Patriots have been trying to anticipate the positions the team may address with its nine selections.

Guard typically lands near the top of the list because one of their two starters from last season, Dan Connolly, is still a free agent and there's no guarantee he'll be back in New England this year. The other starter from last year's Super Bowl run is Ryan Wendell, who is going into the final year of his contract. 

In theory guard appears to be a need, but what if the team could fill that hole on its roster with players who are already in the building?

According to ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss, second-year offensive lineman Cameron Fleming has been devoting time this offseason to training for the guard position, hoping to improve his movement skills -- particularly the side-to-side movement skills that are of the utmost importance at guard. 

A pure right tackle in college, Fleming got a taste of how the Patriots like to employ their big men on the line of scrimmage as a rookie. As is the case with many Patriots linemen, the Stanford product saw practice reps at tackle, guard and as a blocking tight end last season. 

He got a start at guard in Week 4 at Kansas City as the Patriots were trying to find a combination on the offensive line that worked. That didn't appear to happen until Week 5 when the interior trio of Connolly, Wendell and center Bryan Stork were used together for the first time. Fleming suffered a hand injury that set back any future plans of having him play on the interior. 

Upon his return, Fleming was used most often as a blocking tight end where he showed the kind of power and road-grading mentality that paved the way for big gains by Patriots backs. Fleming saw a particularly extensive role in Indianapolis during the regular season when Jonas Gray went off for 201 yards and four touchdowns. 

The Patriots could still opt to draft a guard. This year's class appears to be particularly deep at that spot with players like South Carolina's AJ Cann, Duke's Laken Tomlinson, Florida State's Tre' Jackson who seem as though they wouldn't need much seasoning before they take on roles at the next level.  

There are others like FSU's Cameron Erving (tackle and center in college), Miami's Ereck Flowers (tackle), LSU's La'El Collins (tackle) and Texas A&M's Cedric Ogbuehi (tackle) who could make the move to guard once they hit the NFL.

But if the Patriots believe Fleming can make the switch inside successfully, they could save themselves from spending an early pick at that position.

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