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NFL Preseason

Patriots: Jacoby Brissett to Start

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FOXBOROUGH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Quarterback Jacoby Brissett will start the Patriots’ preseason finale against the Washington Commanders on Sunday before being replaced by rookie Drake Maye, New England first-year head coach Jerod Mayo announced.

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Mayo also noted on Friday that quarterbacks Joe Milton III and Bailey Zappe will draw into the game as well.

“Jacoby is going to start the game off,” Mayo told reporters. “Drake will play as well. Joe will play as well. Now, you guys can sleep. Bailey will play. We do have some players dealing with small things that probably won’t play and get ready for the regular season — some of our proven players.”

Mayo has yet to announce which quarterback will start the Patriots’ season opener against the host Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 8.

Brissett, 31, is in his ninth NFL season and second go-round with the Patriots after stops in Indianapolis, Miami, Cleveland and Washington. He has appeared in 79 games and is 18-30 as a starter, completing 61.3 percent of his passes for 10,574 yards with 51 touchdowns and 23 interceptions.

Maye, who turns 22 next week, was the No. 3 overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft in April. He was a two-year starter at North Carolina.

–Field Level Media

NFL Preseason Round-Up

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BALTIMORE – (Wire Service Report by Field Level Media) – Philly’s kicker Jake Elliott nailed a 49-yard field goal as time ran out after missing from 50 yards seconds earlier as the Philadelphia Eagles edged the host Baltimore Ravens 16-13 on Friday night.

Elliott, who also missed an extra point in the game, got his second chance for the winner when the Eagles sacked Emory Jones and forced a fumble on the first play after his miss came with 16 seconds to play.

Amid reports that Jalen Hurts would start at quarterback for Philadelphia, Kenny Pickett got the call instead and threw for 89 yards and a touchdown in the first half. He completed 14 of 22 passes, including hooking up with Will Shipley for a 7-yard score in the first quarter. Lew Nichols’ 2-yard touchdown run broke a 6-6 tie with 2:16 left in the third quarter.

The Ravens managed only two field goals by Justin Tucker, from 46 and 21 yards, in the first half. But Devin Leary, who came on at quarterback in the second half, scored on a 1-yard run with 5:46 to play to tie the game at 13-13. Josh Johnson, expected to be Lamar Jackson’s backup for Baltimore, played the first half and completed 4 of 12 passes for 62 yards.

Texans 20, Steelers 12

Houston QB C.J. Stroud, the reigning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, threw a 34-yard touchdown pass in his two series as Houston defeated host Pittsburgh.

Stroud’s strike to Tank Dell sent the Texans (1-1) on their way to a 17-0 halftime lead. Dell’s rookie season ended last Dec. 3 when he went down with a fractured fibula. He also sustained a minor gunshot wound when he was caught in crossfire at a bar on April 28. Houston got a 4-yard touchdown run from Dare Ogunbowale and two field goals by Ka’imi Fairbairn, from 36 and 51 yards.

Quarterback Justin Fields played the first quarter in his debut for the Steelers (0-1), hitting 5 of 6 passes for 67 yards. Kyle Allen went the rest of the way, throwing for 193 yards on 17-of-23 passing, including a 6-yard touchdown pass to Connor Heyward. Allen was intercepted once. Daijun Edwards’ 1-yard run in the fourth quarter capped the scoring.

Dolphins 20, Falcons 13

Skylar Thompson threw for 95 yards and a touchdown as Miami turned back Atlanta in the first preseason game for each team.

Thompson, who played the first half, found Jeff Wilson Jr. for a 6-yard score early in the second quarter, and Jaylen Wright’s touchdown run, also for 6 yards, put the Dolphins ahead 17-10 later in the half. Jason Sanders booted field goals of 58 and 46 yards, and Tanner Connor made three catches for 70 yards, including a 43-yarder.

Playing most of the first half for Atlanta, Michael Penix Jr. — the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft — went 9 of 16 passing for 104 yards. Carlos Washington Jr. scored the Falcons’ only touchdown, a 1-yard run late in the first quarter. Younghoe Koo nailed both of his field goal attempts, from 39 yards in the first quarter and 53 yards early in the third.

–Field Level Media