The Philadelphia Eagles have their second win of the preseason, outlasting the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium, 14-13. Philly had trailed for a large chunk of this matchup, but a fourth-quarter touchdown by running back Kendall Milton and a subsequent two-point conversion helped put them up late.
As for the individual play, all eyes in New England were on their top offense, which saw minimal action in the opener. This week, Jacoby Brissett got the start and played roughly the entire first quarter, but the result left little to be desired. Sandwiched between two three-and-outs, the veteran quarterback helped bring the offense inside the Philadelphia 10-yard line, but threw an interception in the end zone to erase the scoring opportunity. He finished his night completing three of his seven throws for 17 yards and that pick. While that wasn't an ideal showing for the presumptive Week 1 starter, things were more encouraging when Maye entered the fray. The No. 3 overall pick showed nice poise, leading scoring drives on his first two series. The second culminated in a four-yard touchdown run by Maye.
He played through halftime and for most of the third quarter, finishing his night completing six of his 11 throws for 47 yards while adding 15 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
As for the Eagles, they held out most of their starters on offense so former Steeler Kenny Pickett got the starting nod. He was faced with a steady amount of pressure during the opening half but was able to lead Philadelphia to a field goal drive early. Pickett was 11 of 13 passing in the first half for 67 yards while absorbing four sacks. Other Philly notables included rookie running back Will Shipley -- who caught four passes for 31 yards -- and veteran corner Avonte Maddox, who was the one that picked off Brissett in the end zone.
In the second half, Tanner McKee relieved Pickett coming out of the locker room and played well, completing 15 of his 19 passes for 140 yards while orchestrating the comeback. Both teams were shutout in the third quarter, but Philadelphia did outscore New England in the fourth, 11-3, to help pull away late.
For more on how this game unfolded, check out our takeaways below.
Rookie report
Patriots QB Drake Maye: The No. 3 overall pick looked the part in his extended showing in New England's second preseason game. After playing a single series in the opener, Maye played four series, coming in for Brissett after he played the bulk of the first quarter. Maye immediately led the Patriots on two scoring drives, including a 49-yard drive that ended with the young quarterback finding the end zone on a four-yard rush.
I thought Maye showed some solid poise early, particularly on a screen pass to JaMycal Hasty that went for 23 yards late in the second quarter. With Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean rocking toward him on a blitz, Maye zipped the ball to Hasty to get New England within striking distance of the end zone.
Maye stayed in under center to begin the third quarter and nearly had the highlight of the night on a deep ball to Javon Baker. After moving around well in the pocket, Maye uncorked a throw down the middle of the field and hit a diving Baker in the hands, but the rookie wideout was unable to make the grab. Even with it being an incompletion, that throw did flash both Maye and Baker's big-play ability.
Eagles RB Will Shipley: The fourth-round rookie out of Clemson was impressive throughout the evening whenever he had the ball in his hands. He rushed five times for 15 yards but was effective in the receiving game. Shipley caught all four of his targets for 31 yards, including a shifty 19-yard gain on a screen pass in the first half.
Other notable performances
Patriots QB Jacoby Brissett: It wasn't the strongest showing by New England's presumptive Week 1 starter. While the offensive line didn't do him many favors, Brissett was also pretty inefficient in his three series. The Patriots went three-and-out twice over the stretch, and when they finally got into some sort of a rhythm and brought the ball inside the Philadelphia 10-yard line, he threw an interception in the red zone. Brissett finished his night completing three of his seven passes for 17 yards and that pick.
While Brissett isn't billed as a quarterback that will elevate the skill position players around him, the appeal is that he's expected to keep the floor high. With that in mind, it's troubling to see those types of mistakes by the veteran.
Eagles WR John Ross: The former first-round pick only had one catch for nine yards, but I thought he was impressive in the passing attack early on. He beat Patriots 2023 first-round pick Christian Gonzalez on a go-route up the left sideline in the first quarter, but Pickett couldn't get the ball in a catchable area. His lone reception was another win against Gonzalez on a deep slant. On top of his receiving work, he also made a couple of steady kickoff returns, including a 36-yarder.
Eagles QB Kenny Pickett: It was an efficient first half for Pickett as he looks to maintain his standing as QB2 for Philly behind Jalen Hurts. He was 11 of 13 passing for 67 yards while leading the Eagles to a field goal drive. Pickett was under siege quite a bit in the opening half as he was sacked four times, but didn't make any dire mistakes under that pressure.
Eagles QB Tanner McKee: After Pickett started and played throughout the first half, McKee came in to begin the third quarter. Out of the gate, the 2023 sixth-round pick made some impressive throws, including a deep sideline ball to tight end E.J. Jenkins in the third quarter. After briefly exiting the game, he returned to help lead Philly to a late touchdown drive to help them pull away with the win. McKee finished with 15 completions on 19 pass attempts for 140 yards.
It wasn't all perfect for McKee, however. On his opening drive of the night and faced with a fourth-and-1, the Eagles tried to deploy the Tush Push. McKee fumbled the snap and recovered it, but was unable to move the chain allowing a turnover on downs. Still, he provided much more movement for Philadelphia's offense than Pickett, albeit with less talented opposition on the other side.
Patriots DE Keion White:Even before New England traded Matthew Judon, White was a player that New England's defense was counting on to take a leap. That has only grown in importance and the second-year pass rusher continues to flash this summer, notably sacking Kenny Pickett in the second quarter by blowing past Philadelphia's left tackle.
Eagles LB Nakobe Dean: As he continues to come back from his Lisfranc injury that put a dent in his sophom*ore season, the former Georgia linebacker showed noticeable speed within Philly's defense. He applied pressure on Maye early, brought down receiver Ja'Lynn Polk behind the line of scrimmage after recognizing a screen, and had a strong stick on running back Kevin Harris. Dean finished his night with five tackles.
Best play
Arguably the most impressive catch made on Thursday night came at the start of the fourth quarter from E.J. Jenkins. Will Grier threw the ball a bit too high up the left side of the field, but the tight end was able to turn, elevate, and make the one-handed catch. While that 19-yard reception did move the chains and bring the Eagles inside the red zone, the drives stalled after that and the club settled for a field goal.
What's next
From here, the Patriots will head out on the road for the first time this summer and wrap up the preseason against the Washington Commanders next Sunday, Aug. 25. As for Philly, they'll head home for their lone exhibition at Lincoln Financial Field as they'll host the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday, Aug. 24.
