Five takeaways from Patriots' preseason opener vs. Giants originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
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The New England Patriots began their preseason with a last-second loss to the New York Giants on Thursday night.
With quarterback Mac Jones and most of the Patriots' starters sitting out, the preseason opener was a chance to see what the rookies bring to the table. It also provided a glimpse at the players who could see their roles increase in the 2022 season.
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Rookie quarterback Bailey Zappe engineered an impressive drive late in the fourth quarter, giving New England the lead with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Lil'Jordan Humphrey. Unfortunately for the Patriots, Davis Webb and the Giants had enough time to put together a game-winning drive. Graham Gano's field goal sealed the victory as time expired.
Here are a few takeaways from the Pats' 23-21 defeat. They'll host the Carolina Panthers in next Friday's preseason game with kickoff set for 7 p.m. ET.
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Matt Patricia, Joe Judge split play-calling duties
One of the biggest offseason storylines for the Patriots was their decision to forgo naming an offensive coordinator to replace Josh McDaniels. Instead, Matt Patricia and Joe Judge have split those duties throughout the spring and summer with Patricia being named the Senior Football Adviser/Offensive Line Coach and Judge earning the Offensive Assistant/Quarterbacks Coach title.
The trend continued on Thursday night as Patricia and Judge tag-teamed offensive play-calling duties. Patricia called plays on offense to begin the game with Brian Hoyer under center, then Judge took over once rookie quarterback Bailey Zappe entered the game.
As our Phil Perry pointed out, head coach Bill Belichick spent plenty of time with Zappe on the sideline. With McDaniels out of the picture, we could see much more of Belichick working with his QBs throughout this season.
An up and down night for the defense
It was an unspectacular night for the Patriots defense, but there were some bright spots.
One of them was a forced fumble by cornerback Terrance Mitchell that caused a Giants turnover in the second quarter. Super Bowl XLIX hero Malcolm Butler had the recovery.
Bailey Zappe's first game in a Patriots uniform got off to a shaky start, but the rookie fourth-round draft pick found his groove in the second half.
Zappe started the third quarter with a 36-yard completion to 2021 seventh-round wideout Tre Nixon (four catches, 81 yards).
ð±: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/cHTGl3RyBMpic.twitter.com/vCrSuVX68y— NFL Network (@nflnetwork)
ðº: #NYGvsNE on @wbzsports pic.twitter.com/UIDaAAYuvq— New England Patriots (@Patriots)
ðº: #NYGvsNE on @NFLNetwork
ð±: Stream on NFL+Â https://t.co/E0QNI4OSYN pic.twitter.com/FWog9Oyt8g— NFL (@NFL) Tyquan Thornton makes solid first impression
Tyquan Thornton, the Patriots' second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, wasted no time making an impact in his unofficial pro debut.
Thornton scored the Patriots' first points of the preseason with a touchdown reception to finish the first quarter. The former Baylor standout showed off his impressive route-running by battling through a defensive holding penalty for the TD.
ðº: @wbzsports pic.twitter.com/biUqZxplKm— New England Patriots (@Patriots) Quiet night for the run game
Other than Harris' goal-line TD, the Patriots couldn't get much of anything going on the ground.
Fourth-round rookie Pierre Strong Jr. had six carries for 25 yards. J.J. Taylor added five carries for 16 yards, and Harris was ineffective outside of his TD as he tallied only nine yards on six carries. Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson had the night off.
New England's run game was a positive takeaway from Tuesday's practice as it started to find success with the outside zone scheme. We didn't see much of that in the preseason opener, so that will be something to monitor going forward as Belichick proceeds with the new-look offense.
