The process of preparing Jimmy Garoppolo to start at quarterback for the first four games of the regular season took another step forward on Thursday night when the Patriots hosted the Saints to kick off their preseason schedule.
Garoppolo handled the first half for the Patriots and looked more comfortable as the night unfolded. In what he called not “our best start,” Garoppolo was sacked twice while completing 3-of-7 passes at the outset, but things improved over the rest of the night. He beat the pass rush with a quick pass that turned into a 56-yard gain for James White and led two scoring drives before exiting the game.
“I think I’m working in the right direction,” Garoppolo said in comments distributed by the team. “I said earlier this week, there’s plenty of things I could work on, little things here and there. That’s just part of being a quarterback. There are a lot of little things here and there and you want to be the best at your craft.”
Coach Bill Belichick didn’t have much to say about Garoppolo’s outing, saying that they’ll “look at everybody” in response to a question about the quarterback’s performance. They’ll be more to look at as the offseason unfolds and Garoppolo should see some more time against first-stringers as it does, which should give a better impression of what the first four weeks of the season will look like.