Brady carries unbeaten Patriots past winless Redskins 33-7

LANDOVER, Md. — Playing before an appreciative audience in a place far from home, Tom Brady helped the New England Patriots stay unbeaten by picking apart the lowly Washington Redskins.

While he was at it, the 42-year-old quarterback climbed past a former star in the NFL record book.

Brady threw for 348 yards and three touchdowns, and the Patriots got another strong performance from their defense in a 33-7 rout of the winless Redskins on Sunday.

Now in his 20th season, Brady whisked by Brett Favre into third place on the career list with 71,923 yards passing. Brady now trails only Peyton Manning (71,940 yards) and Drew Brees (74,845).

Brady also edged closer to Manning’s record 539 touchdown passes, connecting with Julian Edelman, Brandon Bolden and Ryan Izzo to bring his total to 527.

His prowess on the football field is rarely surprising, but the reaction he received was certainly unexpected. Thousands of fans in the crowd wore blue Patriots jerseys — many of them No. 12 with BRADY on the back — and were cheering for the reigning Super Bowl champions from warmups to well after the final whistle.


“It was ridiculous. It was pretty amazing,” Brady said. “It was pretty sweet. We appreciate all the support. It was great to get a win in front of them.”

Shrugging off four sacks, Brady completed 28 of 42 passes — including a 15-yarder to Edelman in the third quarter to eclipse Favre.

This is the fifth time in franchise history that New England has started the season 5-0, and only the second time since 2007.

Playing for the first time since breaking his leg against Philadelphia last December, Redskins quarterback Colt McCoy went 18 for 27 for 119 yards and an interception. McCoy began the season behind Case Keenum and rookie Dwayne Haskins Jr., but got the start over the injured Keenum and inexperienced Haskins for the Redskins (0-5).

Washington had only 220 yards in offense and was 1 for 11 on third-down conversions.

“There is no excuse for what we put out there today,” said McCoy, who was sacked six times.

“We hit the quarterback and (they had) a lot of long third downs,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said.

It’s the first time in franchise history New England has four straight games with at least five sacks. In addition, the Patriots completed a fifth consecutive game without allowing a touchdown pass, the first team to pull off that feat since the 1988 Cleveland Browns.

The defeat kept the pressure on Redskins coach Jay Gruden, whose job status appears to be tenuous in the wake of his team’s 0-5 start. Gruden is 35-49-1 over five-plus seasons with Washington.

“No one’s told me anything,” Gruden said. “I don’t have a concern. If the key works Monday, keep working, go attack the Miami Dolphins and plan on getting our first win next week.”

Washington travels to Miami next week to face the winless Dolphins, who absorbed a 43-0 beatdown from New England on Sept. 15.

After Brady’s 10-yard TD pass to Izzo with 9:14 left made it 33-7, the chant “Brady! Brady!” rose from the stands while thousands of Redskins backers fled to the exits.

“It felt like a home game, just like Foxborough,” New England receiver Josh Gordon said. “It was great to get that support.”

McCoy completed a 12-yard pass on Washington’s first play from scrimmage. Two short runs and a sack followed, but New England’s opening possession also ended with Brady getting dumped in his own backfield.

The Redskins jumped on top when Steven Sims Jr. scored on a 65-yard end around, but the Patriots led 12-7 at halftime and tacked on two touchdowns in the third quarter.

The difference between the seasoned Brady and untested McCoy (now 1-6 as a starter with Washington) was made evident late in the second quarter. With 58 seconds left, McCoy forced a pass that was intercepted by Jason McCourty, who took it 16 yards to the Washington 11.

Brady cautiously completed a short pass and twice threw the ball away before accepting a field goal try that kept New England’s momentum flowing into halftime.

KICKING IT

Mike Nugent handled the kicking for the Patriots after Stephen Gostkowski (hip) was placed on injured reserve Wednesday. Nugent’s first attempt was a botched extra point, but he bounced back with three PATs and field goals of 37 and 23 yards.

INJURIES

Patriots: WR Phillip Dorsett (hamstring) did not play the second half. … RB Rex Burkhead (foot) was inactive. … S Patrick Chung (heel) and S Nate Ebner (groin) were inactive. …

Redskins: DL Daron Payne (knee) left in the second quarter but returned. … OT Morgan Moses (stinger) played through the injury. … CB Quinton Dunbar (stinger) left in the fourth quarter… Keenum (foot) was inactive.

UP NEXT

Patriots: New England faces another NFC East foe, the visiting New York Giants on Thursday night. The Patriots are 55-14 against NFC teams since 2002.

Redskins: Washington is presented with an ideal opportunity to nab its first victory against Miami next Sunday.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Redskins lose Smith for season to broken leg; Mariota hurt

Thirty-three years to the day after the Redskins lost quarterback Joe Theismann to a broken leg, Alex Smith’s season ended on an eerily similar injury in Washington’s 23-21 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday.

Smith broke his right tibia and fibula on a sack by Kareem Jackson midway through the third quarter and will require surgery. The veteran quarterback’s leg turned the wrong way, much the way Theismann’s did when he was sacked by Lawrence Taylor on a Monday night game in 1985. Theismann’s injury ended his career.

“I know it was very painful for him and heartbreaking for a lot of people,” Redskins coach Jay Gruden said. “He’s a great guy and hard worker and one of the key leaders on this football team. These things happen in pro football, unfortunately. Just hate to see them happen with a guy like Alex.”

Theismann attended the game and said he turned away after Smith went down.

“It brought back vivid memories,” Theismann said.

Smith wasn’t the only quarterback hurt during Sunday’s early games. The Titans lost quarterback Marcus Mariota in the final minute of the first half of their blowout loss to the Colts when he reinjured his right elbow.

The Texans lost both of their starting guards against Washington — Zach Fulton to a shoulder injury on the first drive and Senio Kelemete to an ankle injury in the second quarter. For the Redskins, defensive lineman Jonathan Allen was evaluated for a concussion but returned.

The Detroit Lions also suffered a blow on offense when rookie running back Kerryon Johnson hurt his left knee against the Carolina Panthers. He left in the third quarter and didn’t return after running for 87 yards on 15 carries.

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton suffered an apparent ankle injury against the Lions. He left briefly in the third quarter but returned.

Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley, who’s had ankle issues lately, limped off the field twice against the Bengals.

In the Giants’ win over the Buccaneers, New York defensive lineman Kerry Wynn left in the second half with a concussion. Tampa Bay tight end O.J. Howard left in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury.

Jaguars right guard A.J. Cann injured a hamstring in Jacksonville’s loss to the Steelers.

The defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles were banged up even more as they were humiliated by the Saints. Center Jason Kelce hurt his elbow in the first quarter, safety Avonte Maddox left early with a knee injury, defensive back Rasul Douglas had to be helped off the field with a left leg injury and long snapper Rick Lovato was evaluated for a concussion.

For the Saints, right guard Larry Watford left in the third quarter to be evaluated for a concussion.

The Los Angeles Chargers lost defensive tackle Corey Liuget to a knee injury during the second quarter of their loss to the Broncos, and coach Anthony Lynn said after the game that the eighth-year player might miss the rest of the season. Denver wide receiver DeSean Hamilton hurt a knee in the second quarter, and cornerback Bradley Robey was evaluated for a concussion in the fourth quarter.

Brandon LaFell had a touchdown catch for the Raiders before he left in the second half of their win over the Cardinals with an Achilles tendon injury. Oakland cornerback Leon Hall hurt his back.

Cardinals linebacker Deone Bucannon left in the second half with a chest injury.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Brady sees ‘urgency’ in preseason game vs Super Bowl foe

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady thinks his next game against the Philadelphia Eagles is a little like the last time he played them.

The reigning NFL MVP says he’s eager to get back on the field for the first time since the Super Bowl, and his next chance is in Thursday night’s exhibition game against Philadelphia. Brady did not play in the preseason opener against Washington last week.

“We’ve got a big one against the Eagles and we know the challenge they present,” Brady said on Tuesday. “So, (we’re) trying to put a lot into it and see if we can obviously get a lot out of it. You know, it’s a big test. They’re a good team and we’re going to have to play well.”


Philadelphia beat the Patriots 41-33 in February for its first Super Bowl title. The teams will meet again in New England this week, with considerably less on the line.

But you wouldn’t know if from listening to Brady, who said there is urgency even in the second game on the exhibition schedule, because the team needs to line up against an opponent to measure its progress.

“They’re important,” Brady said. “If it was a waste of time, we wouldn’t do it. I think there’s a lot of urgency, and you know we’re not where we need to be, got a lot of work to do and these practices are a part of it, (along with) the opportunities that we get in the game.”

Brady, who turned 41 this month, said he is feeling healthy and planning to play on Thursday night. The decision will be up to coach Bill Belichick.

“I certainly plan on being out there,” Brady said.

Also Tuesday, Brady repeated that his goal is to play “a long time.” He reportedly reached an agreement that could boost his pay this year by $5 million in 2018; he is signed through next season.

“You always have short-term goals and long-term goals, and this year’s the one I’m focused on,” he said. “Obviously, I want to play for a long time, so I’ve said that for a while. Feel like I’m a broken record.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

NFL: Cowboys notch 10th straight win, edge Redskins

ARLINGTON, Texas — Dallas notched a franchise-record 10th straight win by edging Washington 31-26 in Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day action, with quarterback Dak Prescott accounting for two touchdowns and fellow rookie Ezekiel Elliott running in another pair of scores.

It was even closer in Detroit, as Lions kicker Matt Prater slotted his kick as time expired to break a tie and give the Lions victory over Minnesota, while Pittsburgh used its strong defense to record a more comfortable victory against Indianapolis.

Prescott tied Don Meredith’s club record from 50 years ago with his fifth rushing TD of the season, and that helped the Cowboys snatch victory despite a strong performance by Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins.

Dallas continued its strong record against Washington in Thanksgiving games, making it seven wins from eight, and opened a 3-1/2 game lead over the Redskins in the NFC East. Washington missed a chance to move above the New York Giants and into second place.

The Cowboys had an eight-game streak with at least 400 yards snapped, finishing with 353. But Dallas answered with touchdowns each time the Redskins got within a score.

The teams exchanged five successive touchdown drives in the second half, with the fourth of them being a run from Elliott, the NFL rushing leader, which established a winning 31-19 lead.

After Cousins’ second scoring toss to Jordan Reed with 1:53 remaining cut the margin to five points, Dustin Hopkins’ onside kick went out of bounds, and the Cowboys ran out the clock.

Prescott completed 17 of 24 pass attempts for 195 yards and one touchdown. Cousins went 41 of 53 for 449 yards, finishing 8 yards shy of his career high. It was enough for him to become the first Washington quarterback to have two 400-yard games in a season.

Detroit took sole possession of top spot in the NFC North by edging Minnesota 16-13 after the teams started the day with the same 6-4 records.

Darius Slay returned an interception 13 yards with 30 seconds left, setting up Prater’s 40-yard field goal to win it.

The Lions have won six of seven, including two against Minnesota this month, despite trailing in the fourth quarter of every game this season. They extended their NFL record of having their first 11 games decided by seven or fewer points.

The Vikings have lost five of six, plummeting out of first place after surging to the top of the division by winning their first five games.

Minnesota could have played for overtime on its last drive, but coach Mike Zimmer allowed Sam Bradford to throw and Slay made him regret it.

Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown hooked up for three touchdowns as the Steelers beat Indianapolis 28-7 to improve to 6-5 and boost their playoff chances.

source: sports.inquirer.net