Brissett scored the Pats’ first touchdown on a 27-yard run after a faked handoff, the longest touchdown run by a New England quarterback in 40 years.
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Brissett, the first Patriots rookie to start at quarterback since Drew Bledsoe in 1993, was not flawless, with many of his longer passes widely missing their marks, but the team relied on its veteran receivers to work with short passes and get their yardage after the catch while relying on a steady diet of LeGarrette Blount runs to grind the Texans into submission.
“Special” is indeed the word that best sums up what the Patriots, led by a coach in Bill Belichick who tied Curly Lambeau for fourth on the all-time list for regular-season wins (226), accomplished Thursday night.
One week after losing Tom Brady’s backup, Jimmy Garoppolo, to a banged-up shoulder, the team is dealing with an injury to rookie passer Jacoby Brissett.
New England Patriots defensive lineman Jabaal Sheard, right, sacks Houston Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler (17) during the second half of an NFL football game Thursday, Sept. 22, 2016, in Foxborough, Mass. New England ran for 185 yards against the NFL’s 12th ranked run defense and they held the Texans to 284 yards total and just 40% efficiency on third down.
Brissett was steady throughout, moving the chains on offense with a diet of short passes and scrambles.
Brissett completed 11 of 19 passes for 103 yards and added 48 rushing yards, including a 27-yard score. It was awesome. Definitely great to see all the players just run up to you.
As for the Texans, they looked small and unable to handle the moment Thursday.
So as the Patriots prepare to face a struggling Buffalo Bills (0-2) team next Sunday, there’s a good chance New England emerges from the Brady absence undefeated.
Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, making his 2106 debut after missing two games with a hamstring injury, played sparingly and did not have a catch. Osweiler’s biggest mistake of the night came in the second quarter, when he was looking for wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins across the middle.
“I got to get my feet wet”, he said.
It was an epic performance by both those units and Brissett did his best to just ride the wave and not turn the ball over.
It’s just three weeks into a long National Football League season, but we already know what we should have known all along: Don’t bet against Bill Belichick, and never, under any circumstances, rely on one of his former assistants when he faces his old boss. They deserve all the credit.
Maybe we’ve been overrating Brady this whole time, and he’s just a product of Belichick’s brilliance.
Blount ran for 105 yards on 24 carries and has four touchdowns in three games. So here is a call from Thursday night in which Utley misplays a ground ball but recovers in time to make a no-look, behind-the-back flip to first base for the out. “They did a great job at the run game, and did a great job all around and he played well being in a tough situation”.
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Gostkowski made it 13-0 with another field goal at the start of the third quarter, and another special teams fumble on the resulting punt gave the ball back to New England after Jordan Richards pounced on Ervin’s error.
