Final, Giants 17-9: That’s all, folks. We officially have reached the end of the preseason. See you all next Sunday night, when the Patriots visit the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1.
Fourth quarter, 1:16, Giants 17-9: A Brissett pass to Aaron Dobson on fourth-and-1 falls incomplete. The Giants take over, and that’ll just about do it for this one.
Fourth quarter, 2:00, Giants 17-9: We’ve reached the two-minute warning. The Patriots are driving, thanks to a steady dose of D.J. Foster. Red-zone fumble notwithstanding, the undrafted rookie is really showing up tonight.
Fourth quarter, 3:49, Giants 17-9: A 17-yard strike from Logan Thomas to Roger Lewis extends New York’s lead. Brissett leads the Patriots’ offense back out.
Fourth quarter, 11:53, Giants 10-9: The Patriots forced another three and out after a pass breakup by Jonathan Jones and a combined sack by Anthony Johnson and Geneo Grissom.
Fourth quarter, 14:44, Giants 10-9: The Patriots’ long six-plus-minute drive ended with a field goal.
Running back Tyler Gaffney and wide receivers Devin Lucien and Keshawn Martin all got banged up on the drive. Gaffney (foot) left for the locker room. Lucien (back) and Martin (ankle) are getting checked on the sideline.
Third quarter, 6:01, Giants 10-6: The Patriots forced the Giants to punt and have the ball on their own 20 after a touchback.
It’s notable Markus Kuhn is still playing deep into the third quarter of the fourth preseason game. That’s not usually a good sign for a veteran.
Third quarter, 8:08, Giants 10-6: The Giants forced a three and out as running back Tyler Gaffney ran for no gain, followed by a sack and a 6-yard carry by D.J. Foster.
The Giants have the ball on the Patriots’ 47-yard line.
Third quarter, 10:19, Giants 10-6: The Giants have their first lead of the night after Nassib hit Tavarres King for a 59-yard touchdown. King burnt Patriots rookie cornerback Cyrus Jones on a crossing route.
Third quarter, 12:15, Patriots 6-3: The Patriots managed two first downs on completions from Jacoby Brissett to tight end A.J. Derby and wide receiver Devin Lucien.
They were forced to punt after a Tyler Gaffney run for no gain, 3-yard completion to Derby and an incomplete pass to WR DeAndre Carter. The Giants have the ball on their own 14-yard line.
End half, Patriots 6-3: The Patriots come out of the first half with an interception by Jordan Richards, who had just let up a 30-yard completion.
Second quarter, 1:05, Patriots 6-3: The Patriots only got one first down as the second quarter nears its end. Brady hit A.J. Derby for 18 yards on third and 3. The Patriots then lost 10 yards on their subsequent two plays.
Second quarter, 4:10, Patriots 6-3: The Patriots forced a punt and have the ball on their own 35-yard line. Mingo made yet another impact play on a 3-yard tackle for loss.
Second quarter, 7:21, Patriots 6-3: The Patriots were making their way down the field until rookie running back D.J. Foster fumbled the ball after a nice one-handed grab.
Brady previously completed a 38-yard pass to Aaron Dobson. Foster also had a 9-yard carry on the drive.
Second quarter, 10:13, Patriots 6-3: The Giants drove down the field but couldn’t convert on third and 10 inside the red zone, so they settled for a field goal.
Linebacker Barkevious Mingo continued to make an impact with a quick pressure up the middle. He’s looked comfortable playing a number of different roles in the Patriots’ defense.
End first quarter, Patriots 6-0: A marathon first quarter concludes, and the Giants have the ball on the Patriots’ 48-yard line facing second and 5.
First quarter, 1:31, Patriots 6-0: After nearly 13 1/2 minutes, we have a score.
Tom Brady hit Keshawn Martin for a 10-yard touchdown. The Patriots failed to convert on the two-point try.
Brady also hit Julian Edelman on a 20-yard completion and running back D.J. Foster for 30 yards on a wheel route.
Brady is now 12 of 19 for 96 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
First quarter, 5:10: We just saw fumbles on back to back offensive drives.
Patriots tight end Martellus Bennett fumbled after a reception from Brady, and it was recovered by the Giants.
Then linebacker Barkevious Mingo and cornerback Justin Coleman forced Giants running back Paul Perkins to fumble, which was recovered by Patriots defensive tackle Anthony Johnson.
First quarter, 6:28: The Patriots forced another three and out. The Giants gained 6 yards on two carries before Ryan Nassib threw an incompletion.
First quarter, 7:54: We’re still scoreless, and the Patriots have an injury scare. Cameron Fleming came in at left tackle for Nate Solder, who had his left hamstring looked at by trainer Jim Whelan.
The Patriots were forced to punt after Brady was nearly picked off by Landon Collins. Brady is 5 of 11 for 32 yards with one interception so far.
First quarter, 12:49: Aaron Dobson didn’t help his chances of making the team by failing to fight for a pass from Tom Brady that wound up intercepted. Dobson merely leaned toward the ball — not a great pass by Brady, mind you — failing to move his feet to catch or deflect it.
The Giants have the ball on the 50.
First quarter, 13:37: The Patriots forced a three and out with a pass breakup by Malcolm Butler, combined tackle for loss from Jamie Collins and Trey Flowers and sack by Dont’a Hightower. The Giants punted, and the Patriots have the ball on their own 43-yard line.
First quarter, 15:00: The Patriots lost the coin toss and will kick off.
6:38 p.m.: WR Matthew Slater, WR Malcolm Mitchell, CB Cre’Von LeBlanc, DE Rob Ninkovich, DE/LB Shea McClellin, G Jonathan Cooper, G Shaq Mason, WR Danny Amendola, TE Rob Gronkowski, DE Jabaal Sheard are not on the field in uniform for warmups.
WR Chris Harper is on the field but wearing street clothes, not in uniform.
6:09 p.m.: A host of Giants players, including quarterback Eli Manning, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and nearly the entire starting defense, are not expected to play tonight, according to the team.
5:18 p.m.:
4:20 p.m.: We have arrived at MetLife Stadium for tonight’s festivities.
3:20 p.m.: Tom Brady reportedly will start for the Patriots tonight, while Jimmy Garoppolo won’t play.
Patriots fans seem up in arms about this news, but it makes sense to get Brady some more game reps before he is forced to sit four weeks because of an NFL-issued suspension. It’s possible Brady wouldn’t have played in this game if he didn’t miss the Patriots’ first preseason matchup to attend a memorial service and the team’s second with a sliced thumb.
It’s also likely Brady won’t play very deep into tonight’s game, so be prepared to see a lot of rookie QB Jacoby Brissett.
10:45 a.m. ET: All three Patriots quarterbacks traveled to New York for New England’s fourth and final preseason game against the Giants, but it’s unclear which signal callers will actually take the field.
The Patriots might believe Jimmy Garoppolo needs a final tuneup before Week 1. If not, then perhaps Tom Brady will start the game before turning over the reins to Jacoby Brissett after a few series.
These players likely won’t take the field:
G Jonathan Cooper (foot)
G Shaq Mason (hand)
WR Malcolm Mitchell (elbow)
DE/LB Shea McClellin (unknown)
DE Rob Ninkovich (triceps)
WR Danny Amendola (PUP)
WR Matthew Slater (ankle)
TE Rob Gronkowski (precautionary)
DE Jabaal Sheard (knee)
Also don’t expect many of the Patriots’ starters to play.
We likely will see the debut of linebacker Barkevious Mingo, who was traded to the Patriots last Thursday.
These roster battles also should be decided tonight.
The game will air locally on WBZ and nationally on NFL Network. Kickoff is at 7 p.m. ET.
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