The Patriots picked up their first preseason win of the summer against the Lions Friday night in Detroit, 30-28, but along the way, wide receiver Julian Edelman went down with a knee injury.
Edelman caught a pass on a crossing pattern from quarterback Tom Brady on New England’s first drive of the night, but when he tried to make a violent cut, he went down awkwardly. He held the back of his knee, and limped to the sideline. After a few minutes in the medical tent, he started to walk to the locker room, and his limp was not pronounced. Doctors chased him down and made him get in cart. He was spotted by reporters on crutches after the game.
The extent of his injury is not known, but it certainly managed to put a damper on a night that was mostly positive, at least for the New England starters. The Patriots jumped to a 24-0 lead after one quarter thanks in large part to the work of Brady and Chris Hogan. Brady finished the night 12-for-15 for 174 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, while Hogan had four catches for 70 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
In addition, Mike Gillislee, in his first preseason action of the summer, had eight carries for 38 yards and a touchdown. D.J. Foster led all New England rushers with 14 carries for 51 yards. On defense, Eric Rowe had an interception and Malcolm Butler forced an early fumble.
Detroit’s second and third-teamers dominated the New England backups in the late stages of the third and early parts of the fourth quarter, eventually erasing the deficit and taking a 28-27 lead. But a late drive from Jimmy Garoppolo (7-for-12, 83 yards) steered the Patriots into Detroit territory, and a 45-yard field goal from Stephen Gostkowski — his third of the night — proved to be the game-winner for New England.
Game: Patriots (0-2) vs. Detroit Lions (0-0), 7 p.m., Ford Field.
TV: WBZ Channel 4 in Boston. Patriots Preseason Television Network: Local channels.
Online: GamePass.
Radio: 98.5-FM The SportsHub in Boston. Patriots Radio Network: Local stations.
Online: Gamecenter | Patriots notes | Lions notes | Flipcard
Updates on game action from Price
10:03: That's it. Patriots win their first preseason game of the year, 30-28.
10:01: 45-yard field goal is good. Patriots go up 30-28 with two seconds left.
9:59: Pats just setting up for a field-goal attempt here. Looking at a fortysomething yarder.
9:56: Foster keeps the chains moving. Pats getting closer to a field goal attempt here with 1:11 to go.
9:52: Nice stop for the defense. Gets the ball back to New England with a chance for a game-winning drive. 28-27 with 2:01 left.
9:51: Second- and third-team defense has good opportunity here.
9:48: Field goal from Gostkowski is good. 28-27 with 3:41 left to go.
9:47: Nice bounceback drive here by the Patriots' second-team offense as it nears the end zone.
9:45: Nice play and nice execution there by D.J. Foster to pick up that first down. (Big hole for him to run through there.)
9:43: Garoppolo, Foster and Carr starting to move the chains and get in a good rhythm.
9:42: Patriots offense has a bit of a spark here. Let's see if they can keep it rolling as they get to midfield.
9:37: Touchdown Lions. Very few positives here for the Patriots' backups in the third and fourth quarter. 28-24.
9:36: Old friend Tim Wright making catches for the Lions here as Detroit nears the New England red zone.
9:33: Kony Ealy among the defensive notables still in the game for the New England defense.
9:31: Still nothing. Lions get the ball back, looking to take the lead with just under 12 minutes left in the game.
9:23: Not a great sequence there for the New England defense, but it still managed to force a punt here early in the fourth. Have to start somewhere.
9:18: 24-21 at the end of the third quarter. Lions are on the move again.
9:14: Garoppolo is 2-for-3 for 6 yards. We'll have to look at the film, but the backups have done little to distinguish themselves tonight -- big plays allowed, penalties. Just not good.
9:10: Cam Fleming (left tackle) among the notables still in the game. But the New England offense can't get cranked up, and will have to punt it away again.
9:06: Lions put another touchdown on the board here against (most of) the New England second-team defense. Matt Patricia not happy there -- 24-21 with 3:35 left in the third quarter.
9:05: Matt Asiata carrying the load here for Detroit as the Lions get down near the 10.
9:02: Mixture of ones and twos on both sides of the ball as the Lions' offense works its way down the field just past the midway point of the third quarter.
9:01: Gillislee has 8 carries for 38 yards and a touchdown. Hogan has four catches for 70 yards and two touchdowns.
9:00: Dr. Jessica Flynn has an initial look at what happened to Edelman here.
8:52: The team has announced that Edelman is officially out with a knee injury.
8:50: Best drive of the night for the Lions. Stafford fires another touchdown, and it's 24-14 with 10:34 left in the third quarter.
8:45: Alan Branch with the sack. That's a strong dude.
8:29: Halftime. 24-7, Patriots.
8:28: That's it for Brady. He ends 12-for-15 for 174 yards, with two touchdowns and one interception. Will that be the last of him until the opener?
8:26: Butler beaten by Marvin Jones for the first Detroit touchdown of the night. Not a great two-minute sequence there for the New England defense. 24-7 with 1:19 left in the half.
8:22: Two-minute warning, and the Lions have their first sustained offensive drive of the night. Just around midfield. This will present the opportunity for some good situational football for the defense.
8:19: Brady taking a shot for the end zone with a baffling throw. Kind of a punt/broken play on third down. Maybe Hogan thought it was a dead route? Regardless, the Lions take over on the 20 with roughly four minutes left in the first half.
8:14: Eric Rowe picks off a tipped ball, and possession goes back to New England. The Detroit offense is just being suffocated.
8:10: The Detroit offense has crossed midfield.
8:08: Via Greg, Jimmy Garoppolo is warming up.
8:04: Lions with another first down. Feels like a small win for them. On the surface, this is an excellent start for the New England defense.
7:59: Couple of unsettling moments there for the quarterback. After he gets hit, the next play, he's flushed from the pocket and has to scramble. He gets dragged down, and just falls short of the first down. Pats will punt it away.
7:58: Brady gets cracked on the blind side -- Fleming misses his man. That results in a floater of a pass to Gronkowski that's nearly caught. Not a good moment for Fleming there.
7:57: Gronkowski catch in space moves the chains again. First down.
7:55: So I guess Gillislee is OK. Big run there to start that drive.
7:50: Jordan Richards has been playing a linebackerish type of role to this point for the defense. Interesting. And seeing some Langi on the outside.
7:47: That's the end of the first quarter. Patriots up 24-0. The Detroit offense has one first down and didn't cross midfield.
7:45: Brady is 10-for-11 for 157 yards and two touchdowns. Hogan has four catches for 70 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
7:44: Field goal from Gostkowski -- 24-0 with 59 seconds left in the first quarter.
7:42: 25 yards from Brady to Hogan. Have a day, pal. (Did you guys know he played lacrosse in college?)
Brady to @ChrisHogan_15, Part II. pic.twitter.com/eBXRiwvwpI
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) August 25, 2017
Danny Amendola securing a 31-yard pickup off a deflection by Quandre Diggs. pic.twitter.com/TeTh4mPRHL
— Oliver Thomas (@OliverBThomas) August 25, 2017
Julian Edelman limping off the field after a non contact injury on a cut pic.twitter.com/YnsNPzVNus
— Carlton (@SlopingGiraffe) August 25, 2017
