“We weren’t sure of Nate’s situation going into the game”, Belichick said. “We knew as a team, we believed in him”, Pro Bowl safety Devin McCourty said of Garoppolo.
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Two of Gostkowski’s six kickoffs went for touchbacks, but by kicking the ball deep while intentionally keeping it in play, he forced the Cardinals to start their other four post-kickoff possessions on their 11, 19, 21 and 8.
While Brady may not be able to participate in team functions during his suspension, perhaps he was there in spirit Sunday night to help lift his team to victory.
His replacement Jimmy Garoppolo threw for 264 yards and a touchdown – completing 24 of 33 passes without an interception – but the Patriots only hung on to victory when the Arizona kicker missed a field goal attempt in the final minute.
Brady was missing due to his part in the “Deflategate” scandal, in which the Patriots were found to have tampered with the inflation of footballs in a playoff game.
“We didn’t play ideal football”, Winston said after the game. So this game falls on me, and I hate it.
“He made some good plays”. The degree of difficulty was amplified when Rob Gronkowski, arguably the most dynamic offensive weapon in the league, and left tackle Nate Solder were ruled out on Friday. Still, Garoppolo didn’t seem to mind the jump to meaningful action. “You don’t get those things when you’re playing”, Brady said on the program. The crowd noise, I told you all last week it is so hard to prepare for real crowd noise. Garoppolo and the Patriots must focus on limiting turnovers (especially in Brady’s absence). Everybody on this team is confident in him.
Team captain Matt Slater said preparation played a big role in the Patriots adjusting with key players sidelined Sunday. “He is a guy that can change the complexion of the game in one touch”.
Time is the one thing the Patriots don’t have because they are in it to win every year.
It’s not the ideal way to start the season but it could just be the Draymond Green-ing the doctor order. “It really is”, Garoppolo said. Arizona’s offense never began a drive past their own 25-yard-line when receiving a kickoff from the Patriots on Sunday night. Even if Garoppolo goes out and rolls the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans – possible because only the Texans are truly good and none of them are as good as Arizona’s defense. After all, Jimmy G is – without question – the best looking quarterback in football.
Rob Riggle and the folks at Fox Sports recently put together an interesting musical tribute to Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. When the Raiders got the ball, trailing New Orleans by seven, Del Rio let his team know they’d be going for a win, not a tie and overtime, after they scored a touchdown.
Belichick was asked about his feelings vs. what would likely be written about his team and his young passer.
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This was pretty much a mess all night long. Like, theres really nothing higher on my list than the story line tomorrow.. “I think I was just interested in how we were doing, what I was seeing, how the adjustments were made”. “I don’t even have words to express what this probably means to the whole team”. That’s what I saw in the game.
