Game Notes: Pats Squeak Past Saints

The Saints jumped out to an early lead, but it was the solid performance from Jimmy Garoppolo paired with a last-minute field goal from Stephen Gostkowski led the Patriots to victory in the Bayou. 

INDIVIDUAL NOTES  


GOSTKOWSKI HANDLES THE NEW EXTRA POINT RULE
K Stephen Gostkowski, who is second in NFL history for most consecutive extra points with 411, had his first extra point under the NFL’s new extra point rule that moved the spot of the kick from the 2-yard line to the 15-yard line late in the second quarter. 

GOSTKOWSKI DRILLS 35-YARD GAME-WINNING FIELD GOAL
Gostkowski connected on a 35-yard field goal with 19 seconds to play to lift the Patriots to a 26-24 victory. Gostkowski has kicked six game-winning field goals in his career, including one in the postseason. 

TOM BRADY MADE THE START
Tom Brady started the game and played the first three offensive series. Brady finished 2-for-5 for 13 yards. 

JIMMY GAROPPOLO ENTERED THE GAME ON THE FOURTH OFFENSIVE SERIES 
Jimmy Garoppolo entered the game on the third offensive series, which was the last offensive series in the first quarter. He finished 28-of-33 for 269 yards with one touchdown and one interception 

GAROPPOLO IS PERFECT ON A TWO-MINUTE DRILL 
Garoppolo executed a two-minute drill prior to halftime and completed 5-of-5 passes for 65 yards, including a 24-yard touchdown pass to WR Chris Harper.

ROOKIE CHIRS HARPER HAD A BIG PUNT RETURN IN 4Q
Rookie free agent WR Chris Harper had a big punt return in the fourth quarter when he returned a punt 28 yards to help aid the game-winning drive.  

BROWN AND LEWIS MAKE THEIR DEBUT
Newly acquired CB Tarell Brown and RB Deion Lewis made their Patriots debuts after missing the first preseason game against Green Bay.

JAMES MORRIS FORCES A FUMBLE 
LB James Morris forced a fumble in the third quarter that was recovered by SJordan Richards deep in New England territory. The Patriots turned that turnover into a touchdown. Morris led the team with five tackles.

STARTING BLOCKS


THREE MEMBERS OF THE 2015 DRAFT CLASS GET STARTS
Three members of the 2015 draft class were in the starting lineup for the second straight week with first-round draft pick DL Malcom Brown and fourth-round draft picks OL Tre’ Jackson and OL Shag Mason. 

TWO ROOKIE FREE AGENTS GET STARTS 
Two rookie free agents were in the starting lineup with OL David Andrewsmaking his second straight start at center, and rookie free agent WR Chris Harper getting a start.

MORRIS IN THE STARTING LINEUP 
LB James Morris, who spent the entire 2014 season on injured reserve, started at linebacker.