Garoppolo Impressive In Patriots Comeback Win
BOSTON (CBS) -- When you're Tom Brady's backup, chances are the preseason is the only time you get to show off what you can do.
But this year is a little different for Jimmy Garoppolo. With a cloud of uncertainty surrounding Brady and his four-game suspension for that whole DeflateGate matter, the second-year quarterback could be playing some very meaningful snaps in three weeks.
So after a decent game in New England's preseason opener against Green Bay, what we needed to see out of Garoppolo were signs of growth. Leading up to Saturday night's preseason tilt in New Orleans, Garoppolo said he wanted to get the ball out of his hand much quicker, not allowing any pressure from the defense to get to him.
Not only did his passes come faster Saturday night, they rarely found anything but their intended target. Garoppolo was surgical at times in New England's 26-24 win over the Saints, finishing the evening 28-for-33 for 269 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He completed 10 straight passes at one point, and ran a near perfect scoring drive with just over a minute left in the first half.
With his team about to head into the locker room down 21-0, Garoppolo didn't want to leave the field without putting some points on the board. Determine to find the end zone, he went 5-for-5 for 65 yards, capping things off by evading a sack with a nifty spin move and hitting rookie receiver Chris Harper for a 24-yard touchdown strike.
"It was a good momentum swing into the half, that's for sure," he said of his scoring strike. "To get that touchdown on a bit of a scramble play, it really helped us."
He called the play "just a happening," making a play when the team needed it. Asked if he's feeling more and more comfortable, Garoppolo casually responded, "No question."
He led the team on a pair of scoring drives in the second half to cut the Saints' lead to just one point: Going 3-for-4 for 21 yards on a 13-play drive that ended with an 11-yard Dion Lewis touchdown run, and an 11-play drive that saw him go 7-for-7 for 72 yards before James White ran it in from three yards out, making it 21-20 Saints.
And after making his only big mistake of the evening, an interception on a forced pass with just under 11 minutes left in the game, he shook it off to lead the Patriots on two field goal drives to steal the win.
"It was a poor decision, really. I can't make that throw when we're backed up," he said of the pick, which came with Garoppolo snapping the ball at the New England 12. "You don't want to make a mistake in that type of situation. It was a poor decision."
Despite the Saints taking over at the New England 15, the Patriots defense held them to just a field goal, making it a 24-20 game.
"After an interception you want to get it back as fast as you can. You hope the defense does a great job like they did," he said. "You have to forget about it quickly. That's part of being a quarterback, having a short memory."
That mistake was far from his mind as he took the field with a chance to lead the team to victory. The Patriots trailed 24-23 in the final minutes of the contest, but thanks to a 28-yard return by Harper, Garoppolo and the offense took over at the New Orleans 45 with two minutes to go. Garoppolo only had to throw one pass on their final drive, a 22-yard hookup with Jonathan Krause to the Saints' 23. After a pair of handoffs and a keeper by Garoppolo, Stephen Gostkowski booted a 35-yarder for the win.
Garoppolo was calm throughout the night, display poise in the pocket and any time he felt a sniff of pressure. He accomplished his goal of getting the ball out quickly, and showed some vast improvement from nine days ago.
It's only preseason, so the results don't really count for much and the Saints defense that Garoppolo went against was far from full strength. It was also a defense he saw twice in the week leading up to the game in a pair of joint practices between the two teams.
But in a week in which we all wanted to see some growth from the backup, who may soon be playing in games that matter, he showed that and more. Garoppolo will have to continue to show more growth, but Patriots fans should feel good about their No. 2 quarterback after Saturday night, even if he does have to slide into that No. 1 slot temporarily.