Patriots Observations: Did Defensive Front Answer Questions Vs. Panthers?

FOXBORO, Mass. -- The New England Patriots will be without defensive tackle Christian Barmore for an extended period of time. But early indications are their defensive front has players who can help shoulder the load.

New England's defense absolutely dominated the Carolina Panthers as the Patriots earned a 17-3 victory in their preseason opener at Gillette Stadium on Thursday night.

Of course, we can't go any further with noting the Panthers were without their starters on the offensive line. Panthers starting quarterback Bryce Young did not play either. You know who else didn't play? Patriots star pass-rusher Matthew Judon and New England's star defensive tackle Davon Godchaux.

Instead, it was a defensive front including Anfernee Jennings, Jeremiah Pharms Jr., Daniel Ekuale and Keion White. Armon Watts and Trysten Hill got in on the action, too.

Pharms was one of New England's standouts in the contest. He was disruptive on the interior, specifically when he beat Panthers offensive tackle Ricky Less for a sack and forced fumble in the first quarter. Carolina quarterback Jack Plummer was lucky to recover it from the seat of his pants. Pharms also drew a pair of holding penalties before a run stuff.

The contributions came from everywhere, it seemed. Deatrich Wise subbed in on Carolina's first third down of the game and beat offensive tackle Badara Traore for a sack. Fellow edge rusher Oshane Ximines, who saw a lot of run after the top grouping of Jennings and White went to the bench, recorded a sack and forced fumble with five minutes left in the first half before linebacker Christian Elliss had one of his own later in the quarter.

The Patriots got after the Panthers with consistent pressure. And while it's fair to think some of that was due to Carolina's offense, the fact New England did it with some of its own unknowns made it a optimistic sign.

Here are more observations from Patriots-Panthers:

-- Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye each played one series.

Brissett, who has been New England's starting quarterback all training camp, went 0-for-3 in four snaps. Brissett underthrew speedy receiver Tyquan Thornton on a second-down throw that could have went for a big gain. Thornton beat Panthers cornerback Lamar Jackson off the line of scrimmage, but Brissett failed to lead him down the sideline and Jackson was able to break it up.

Maye played the next offensive series, though he was limited to six snaps in the contest. Maye went 2-for-3 but both throws were at or behind the line of scrimmage. Maye converted a third-and-12 after he connected with running back Antonio Gibson on a chain-moving screen. Maye faced a second third-and-long after an incompletion and run stuff. He hit running back Kevin Harris on another check down, but Harris picked up six yards on third-and-11.

-- Both Brissett and Maye played behind the same offensive line, which consisted of, from left to right, Vederian Lowe, Sidy Sow, David Andrews, Mike Onwenu and Chukwuma Okorafor. Maye had played behind New England's second-string offensive line during training camp practices.

The offensive line, as it has been throughout camp, was one of the more concerning takeaways from the night.

-- Bailey Zappe took over after Brissett and Maye. He played the lion's share of reps and went 12-for-20 for 108 yards. His highlight of the game came on a throw down the sideline to Kayshon Boutte, who climbed the ladder and set the offense up inside the 10-yard line.

-- Joe Milton III took over with four minutes left in the third quarter. Milton made a few highlights, including one 12-yard scramble in which he ran much more than 12 yards. Milton also had a 38-yard touchdown pass to JaQuae Jackson.

-- Cornerbacks Jonathan Jones and Marcus Jones did not play in the preseason game with the starting trio including Christian Gonzalez and Marco Wilson on the outside with Shaun Wade in the slot. Alex Austin and Isaiah Bolden replaced Gonzalez and Wade, respectively, with Wilson getting plenty of first-half run.

-- Kevin Harris is a contender for New England's third running back spot, and given he took the field behind Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson, he might be closer to securing that role. Harris punched in New England's first touchdown of the game to give the Patriots a 7-0 lead midway through the second quarter.

-- Backup offensive lineman Nick Leverett (No. 51 in video below) pancaked a defensive tackle on Harris' touchdown run. Leverett, an offseason award winner, continues to work with the backup offensive line.

Kevo crashing 💥@kevoharris1 | #NEPats

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— New England Patriots (@Patriots) August 9, 2024

-- The Patriots committed four first-half penalties, all of which came on offense. They concluded the night with six penalties.

-- Matthew Judon, who is unhappy about his contract situation, was in uniform. Judon played catch with Patriots fans about an hour before kickoff, which he hadn't done before recent preseason practices.

-- After not being in uniform when the team went through pregame stretches and drills, DeMario Douglas and Marcus Jones each wore uniforms on the sideline.

-- The following players were not in uniform: Marte Mapu, Joshuah Bledsoe, Christian Barmore (bloodclots). Those on New England's physically unable to perform list -- Sione Takitaki, Cole Strange and Kendrick Bourne -- also were not in uniform.

-- The Patriots will hold a training camp practice Sunday and Monday before joint practices against the Philadelphia Eagles on Tuesday. New England will host Philadelphia in its second of three preseason games next Thursday.