Tom Brady played most of the first half for the Patriots. PHOTO: Peter Bond/Flickr Commons
The New England Patriots edged the Carolina Panthers 10-3 in the third preseason game on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium.
The game featured the preseason debut of Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and the majority of the projected starters on both defense and offense.
“There is a lot that we need to do. There were a lot of good things, but a lot of things that we need to clean up. A lot of long-yardage situations, too many penalties. We got to get back to work,” said Brady in his post-game press conference.
The Patriots offense struggled to start the game because of penalties and drops leading Brady to toss his helmet on his way back to the sideline after a series.
However, the offense got it going near the end of the first quarter and into the second quarter.
Brady led New England on a 15-play drive capped off by a one-yard touchdown run by James Develin to put the Patriots up 7-0 following a Stephen Gostkowski extra point.
A highlight of the drive was Brady throwing an 18-yard dart to tight end Ryan Izzo to help set up the touchdown.
Brady left the game completing 8 of 12 passes for 75 yards.
After the Panthers cut New England’s lead to 7-3 in the fourth quarter, backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham drove the patriots 70 yards in ten plays resulting in a Gostkowski field goal to give New England a 10-3 lead.
Stidham took over for Brady in the final minutes of the second quarter and played the remainder of the game.
He went 15 for 19 for 134 yards and a completion percentage of 78.9.
Brian Hoyer did not see any action.
Defense Dominates
The Patriots defense dominated the Cam Newton led Carolina Panthers offense, not allowing them to cross the 50-yard line the entire first half.
“I thought we played competitively, we still have a lot of things to work on. So we will go back to work this week and keep grinding away. We have a long way to go,” said Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick after the game.
On Carolina’s first drive, New England’s defense gave up just six yards on three plays and forced a punt.
On the Panthers second drive, Kyle Van Noy sacked Newton on second down, leading to another Carolina three-and-out.
Overall, the Patriots gave up just 99 total yards and registered four sacks (two on Newton).
Next Up
The Patriots final preseason game is set to take place on Thursday, August 29 against the New York Giants at Gillette Stadium.
Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.
See the Five Takeaways in the Slideshow Below
Related Slideshow: 5 Takeaways from the Patriots Preseason Win Over Carolina - August 22, 2019
After sitting out the first two preseason games, Tom Brady made his preseason debut on Thursday night.
Brady played into the second quarter, completing eight of 12 passes for 75 yards.
“There is a lot that we need to do. There were a lot of good things, but a lot of things that we need to clean up. A lot of long-yardage situations, too many penalties. We got to get back to work,” said Brady after the game.
The night started out as a frustrating one for Brady as the Patriots offense struggled to move the ball early on due to penalties and drops.
After one series, Brady could be seen tossing his helmet as he walked to the sideline.
However, the Patriots offense got it going at the end of the first quarter.
Brady led the Patriots on a 15-play drive that extended into the second quarter and was capped off by a one-yard touchdown run by James Develin.
A highlight of the drive was Brady connecting with tight end Ryan Izzo for an 18-yard gain.
The much-hyped Patriots defense was on display Thursday night with just about all the starters playing, including Michael Bennett.
“It was great, I think today we talked about getting off to a good start against a team that is very high power on offense. I thought we did a good job of first stopping the run and then getting a few good rushes in there,” said Patriots safety Devin McCourty after the game.
On Carolina’s first drive, Cam Newton and company managed just six yards on three plays before punting the ball away.
On the Panthers second series, New England’s Kyle Van Noy sacked Newton on second down, but stayed down with an apparent knee injury.
He walked off the field on his own an went to the blue medical tent behind the Patriots bench. He would return to the game on the Patriots next defensive series.
Newton left the game after just two offensive series with an injury.
With Josh Gordon and Demaryius Thomas set to return, the Patriots wide receiver depth chart is significantly more crowded then it was at the start of camp.
The two bubble players that saw action on Thursday night were Phillip Dorsett and rookie Jakobi Meyers.
Dorsett hauled in seven catches for 47 yards, with the majority of them coming from Tom Brady early in the game.
“Phillip is a guy that I have played a lot of football with. Experience is a great thing in football if you use it well, and I think our experience together pays off. I read his body language. I think a great think about Phil is that he takes advantage of his opportunities,” said Brady.
Meyers hauled in seven catches for 74 yards in the game, but struggled to get on the same page with Brady.
On one play, Brady tried to throw a deep ball to Meyers down the sideline, but Meyers stopped running.
“I think for all of us, you play with guys that are new to the offense and sometimes they think they are not part of the rout, and then the defense plays a certain coverage and they are part of the rout. That’s part of early in the season, that’s part of this time of year,” said Brady about the play.
On another play, Brady threw the ball behind Meyers, who could not haul it in after it hit his hands.
Meyers was also called for a holding penalty that brought back a long Sony Michel run.
All of Meyers catches came with Jarrett Stidham under center.
Other receivers on the bubble, Maurice Harris and Braxton Berrios, did not play in the game, likely putting them behind when it comes to getting a roster spot.
Earlier this week, the Patriots released veteran punter Ryan Allen, giving the starting job to rookie punter Jake Bailey.
In Thursday’s preseason game, Bailey hit four punts for a combined 192 yards. That is an average of 48 yards per punt.
He also hit two punts inside the Panthers 20-yard line.
“He has done some different things for us. He was the better punter, he kicks off and he holds, so we will see how it goes,” said Patriots head coach Bill Belichick after the game.
Bailey held for kicker Stephen Gostkowski throughout the game.
On one field goal, Bailey did not get the laces out and Gostkowski missed the kick.
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