The story for the New England Patriots in their first game of the preseason was Jimmy Garoppolo. Yes, they dropped a game against the Jaguars, but it really wasn’t their number one goal to win that game against Jacksonville. They just needed to get a good look at the guys that they want to keep or to see what some players that are on the bubble are capable off. Garoppolo played a lot, two and a half quarters and he was great.
But, he is now going to play again against the Texans and their defense is a legit one. He is going to get a lot of time on the field yet again, but we are not sure if he is going to be able to do the same thing that he did to the Jags. But, we have to point one thing out.
If Brady goes down at any point of the season, it seems that the Patriots won’t lose much in quality. Where they lose, it is that leadership that Brady brings, that experience that he has. But, if we are looking at the ability to move the ball, in this system, it seems that Garoppolo can do just as good of a job as Brady can do.
Texans did okay against the Panthers, but they need to keep improving on the offensive side of the ball. DeShaun Watson had a good game, and he will play at least half the match against the Patriots which is going to be a big challenge for the youngster.
Historically, the Texans haven’t been really good against the Patriots. In the last three duels, the total point difference between these two teams is +60 for the Patriots. They met two times last year, and the Patriots won both clashes, 27:0 in Week 3 with Brissett starting and 34:14 in the Divisional Round. We are going to pick the Patriots to win this one 28:17, with Garoppolo having another good game.
