Jimmy Garoppolo Continues Making Strides for New England Patriots

What a difference a week makes.

After being beaten around like a ball of dough in the New England Patriots' Week 1 preseason loss to the Green Bay Packers, Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo looked like a different player altogether in Saturday night's 26-24 win over the New Orleans Saints, the Patriots' second game of the preseason.

No quarterback is going to step in and replace Tom Brady, but Garoppolo may be much more well-prepared to assume that responsibility than it once seemed.

Garoppolo went 28-of-33 for 269 yards with a touchdown and an interception on the night, but perhaps the best signs of hope came from Garoppolo's situational performance. The Patriots were down 15-0 by the time Garoppolo even took the field Saturday night, but with one accurate pass after another, Garoppolo chipped away at the Saints defense and brought the Patriots rallying back. 

He led the offense down the field for a touchdown on a two-minute drill at the end of the first half and a field-goal drive in another two-minute drill at the end of the game.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is always preaching situational football to his team, and Garoppolo's performance in key spots has to bring a smile to Belichick's face. ESPN's Mike Reiss put it this way:

No, Garoppolo is not going to be the second coming of Brady in his second year in the NFL. No one expects him to be. 

All the Patriots want is for him to manage the offense, to use his skills and to be efficient. Garoppolo did all three of those things Saturday night. Garoppolo led the Patriots to a score on five of his nine drives, and it would have been six if kicker Stephen Gostkowski had hit the ball just a yard farther to the right on a missed 57-yard attempt.

But Garoppolo also made the play of the night, evading pressure and keeping his eyes downfield on a 24-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Chris Harper.

That's the kind of mobility that is unique to Garoppolo's skill set. 

Aside from that highlight-reel play, though, there was nothing flashy about Garoppolo's performance. It was simply efficient and effective. Garoppolo got the ball out quickly and hit his open receivers.

In that respect, Saturday was a step forward from what we saw from Garoppolo against the Packers. The Patriots' second-year quarterback was sacked seven times last week and barely got his feet under him at times before he was faced with immense pressure and forced to get the ball out quickly.

"There weren't a lot of incomplete passes," Belichick said. "He threw the ball pretty accurately. A lot different than last week when, you know, [he was] getting hit a lot. But there really wasn't a lot of pressure on the quarterback tonight. That's always a good thing for the passing game."

Let's not forget, either, that Garoppolo is still playing behind a backup offensive line and throwing to a group of backup skill position players. If he is forced to play the season opener due to Brady's suspension, Garoppolo will not be throwing to wide receiver Jonathan Krause and tight end Jimmay Mundine and lining up behind center David Andrews. He'll be throwing to Julian Edelman and tight end Rob Gronkowski and taking snaps from center Bryan Stork.

The Patriots still have two preseason games before they have to iron everything out for the regular season. For now, though, Garoppolo's progress appears to be going in the right direction.

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained via team news release.