Jimmy Garopollo’s injury may end up being merely a temporary setback for the New England Patriots, but they are far from perfect
For most of the first half, it looked like the New England Patriots had discovered their Next Tom Brady. OK, that may be a stretch, but it at least looked like they had found a player they could sell as a potential Next Tom Brady to one of the many quarterback-starved teams once the Actual Tom Brady returned from his four week league-mandated vacation. In his second game as a starter, Jimmy Garoppolo went 18-for-27, passing for 234 yards as the Patriots built up a 21-0 lead over the Miami Dolphins. Garoppolo, coming off New England’s huge Week 1 road win over the Arizona Cardinals, was once again putting in an impressive showing without the help of Rob Gronkowski, who missed his straight game with a hamstring injury.
Then, shortly before half-time, Garoppolo went down with a shoulder injury after a hard hit from Kiko Alonso. He would not return, meaning that it was up to rookie third-string quarterback Jacoby Brissett to finish the game. Capitalizing on Garoppolo’s absence, Miami quarterback Ryan Tannenhill lead his team to a near-comeback in the second half, one only snuffed in the game’s final seconds when his attempt at a game-tying touchdown was intercepted by Duron Harmon. The Patriots held on to a 31-24 victory in their home opener, but they made it far closer than it probably should have been.
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“NFL games I played stoned were some of the best games I ever played.” - former NFL offensive lineman Eben Britton
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An EXTREMELY dapper Cam Newton is at the podium
Watch LIVE: https://t.co/ZWRWDfTKoJ pic.twitter.com/y6adSd8Q6u
Matthew Stafford doesn't get hit, he gives hits. https://t.co/KMtHROH5qN pic.twitter.com/0qbPkKdYi1
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