FOXBORO, Mass. — With Tom Brady tending to more pressing matters Tuesday, we got a glimpse of how a practice run by Jimmy Garoppolo might look for the New England Patriots.
Quite frankly, it wasn’t pretty, though it wasn’t entirely the second-year pro’s fault. Garoppolo threw two interceptions, both careening off the hands of his intended pass-catchers. There was rain, dropped balls, inaccurate passes, hesitancy in decision making and a slew of players missing because of injuries.
Garoppolo is expected to receive the majority of reps at quarterback in the Patriots’ preseason opener Thursday night against the Green Bay Packers, as the team prepares for a possible future without Brady. Garoppolo has been up and down in training camp, and he’s ready to get the exhibition season started.
“It’s awesome to get back out there,” Garoppolo said. “The games are — practice is fun and everything, but the games are what we play for. It’s exciting. Thursday’s going to be fun.”
Garoppolo is 52-of-79 passing with two interceptions in 7-on-7s through 11 practices and 134 of 207 with three interceptions in 11-on-11s. Overall, he has completed 65 percent of his passes, and he’s already shown plenty of improvement from the spring, when he struggled with turnovers in organized team activities and minicamp.
To compare, Brady is 59 of 74 with two interceptions in 7-on-7s and 131 of 171 with one pick in 11-on-11s. He has completed 77.6 percent of his passes in team drills, but he’s also working with the Patriots’ best receivers, while Garoppolo’s targets are getting worse as injuries pile up. The Patriots’ backups now are working with Brady as Julian Edelman, Brandon LaFell and Aaron Dobson deal with injuries, leaving Garoppolo to throw to rookies and former practice-squaders.
Brady’s suspension appeal will be settled by the beginning of the season, but if the NFL and NFL Players Association can’t work out a settlement, Garoppolo won’t know if he’s starting in Week 1 until Sept. 4 — just six days before the Patriots’ opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Garoppolo claims he’s not thinking about that Thursday night game just yet.
“We’ll see what happens,” Garoppolo said. “Right now we’re just coming out here practicing today, dealing with the conditions and everything, and that’s what we’re worried about.”
Garoppolo, as expected, is feeling much more comfortable as the preseason rolls around this season, as opposed to last year when he was a rookie. He was solid last summer, completing 58.2 percent of his passes for 618 yards and five touchdowns with one interception. With more on Garoppolo’s plate now, it might not be entirely fair to assess him on statistics, however.
“Oh, it’s much different,” Garoppolo said. “Last year, there were much different circumstances, knowing the playbook, I was very new back then. Just the comfortability of the offense is much more than it was last year.”
It might not be easy for Garoppolo in the preseason opener, however. The Patriots likely will be without projected offensive starters Nate Solder, Ryan Wendell, Bryan Stork, LeGarrette Blount, Edelman and LaFell. Dobson and wideout Brian Tyms also are dealing with injuries, so Garoppolo likely will throw to Brandon Gibson, Josh Boyce and Jonathan Krause with a patchwork offensive line.
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
