Patriots vs. Panthers: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2015 Preseason

A fourth-quarter comeback led by quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo lifted the New England Patriots to a 17-16 win over the Carolina Panthers on Friday night.  

Entering the game down by a score of 16-7, Garoppolo went 13-of-17 for 126 yards and a touchdown to improve the Patriots' preseason record to 2-1. 

The Patriots quarterback to start the game, Tom Brady, was less-than-impressive to say the least in his first few series. In the first quarter, Brady converted the same number of passes to Patriots receivers and Panthers defensive backs: two. 

The first came at the hands of Charles Tillman, who ripped the ball away from Aaron Dobson while falling to the ground as the NFL shows:

The second came on a route that was jumped by Kurt Coleman, stepping in front of Dobson to pick Brady off. Ben Volin of the Boston Globe didn't see it as Dobson's fault:

With plenty going on around Brady off the field, ESPN's Skip Bayless thinks maybe his Deflategate hearings are getting to him:

But the Panthers could not do much to capitalize on Brady's turnovers and New England's offensive inability. They tacked on just a pair of field goals in the game's first half. 

Their first field goal did not impress ESPN's David Newton:

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The Carolina Panthers continued to start slow offensively. With a field goal on four drives to start Friday night's game against New England the first unit has 10 points on 11 series. Drops continue to be an issue.

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Carolina's Cam Newton, without his top receiver, Kelvin Benjamin, showed that he can still find success year. Volin commented on Newton's performance:

Newton completed 17 of 28 passes, suffering from a number of drops, for 160 yards and a touchdown.

Most of his receptions were short, and tight end Greg Olsen was his go-to-guy, catching six passes for 51 yards from Newton on Friday night. 

This is just a preview of Olsen's big year, according to ABC 11's Derek Rowles:

Brady came to life in the final two minutes of the first half, going 5-of-7, with three receptions going to tight end Scott Chandler including an 18-yard touchdown to put the Patriots ahead going into the locker room.

MassLive's Kevin Duffy thinks Brady's presence is going to be a huge help for Chandler:

Newton didn't wait too long to respond, embarking on a nine play, 80-yard drive that took just 4:17, ending in a two-yard pass to Mike Tolbert. 

There would be no chance for Brady to respond as Garoppolo took the field for the second half as he continues to prepare for the first regular starts of his career when Brady serves his four-game suspension.

He didn't have the best start after his solid Week 2 outing, as the Shutdown Corner saw Garoppolo's first two passes almost intercepted:

But Garoppolo settled after the Panthers tacked on another three to go up nine, using a big 40-yard completion to Dobson to set up a nine-yard touchdown to Dion Lewis to bring the Patriots back within two. 

Within minutes, they were in the lead after a Stephen Gostkowski 53-yard field goal with 6:21 left in the game. 

Despite the loss, Newton showed that he is more than capable of surviving without Benjamin this year, though Olsen will surely be a marked man come the regular season. He will need to spend the rest of the preseason trying to spread around the offensive wealth to his other receivers.

Though he hasn't been playing against the top defensive units this preseason, Garoppolo has shown a winning brand of football, finding a way to get the Patriots back into games. If the Patriots want to get a good look on how he will perform in the regular season once Brady's suspension begins, Garoppolo has to find a way to get first-team reps against top defensive sides.