FOXBOROUGH: The Eagles-Patriots preseason game at Gillette Stadium had the excitement level of someone going through his or her junk mail.
For the record, the Birds prevailed on a late fourth-quarter drive engineered by Tanner McKee, a seven-play 70-yard drive that ended with a one-yard plunge Kendall Milton.
The two-point conversion was good (McKee to Ainias Smith) and the Eagles walked away with a 14-13 win raising their preseason record to 2-0.
This game did not feature any of the crispness and emotion that marked the joint practice on Tuesday.
The teams actually engaged in a skirmish during the two-hour plus session.
Perhaps it was the heat Tuesday that led to the Chippy nature of the practice...Thursday evening's game started with the temperature at a cool 73 degrees.
Eagles head coach Nick Siranni pointed out in his post-game interview that the offense played 89 snaps in the joint practice here on Tuesday and that was why many of the starters on both sides of the ball did not play on Thursday.
The ones that did play Thursday night, also played Tuesday and played like there was fatigue.
Eagles starter Kenny Pickett was underwhelming in his half of worth for the second week in a row.
The 2022 first round pick out of Pitt was 11 of 13 for 67 yards.
Pickett's offense did not get in the end zone or generate any real rhythm in the first half that finished with the score 10-3 Patriots.
Jacoby Brissett wasn't any better for the Pats. In one quarter, he was 3 of 7 for 17 yards. He threw a brutal interception in the end zone to Avonte Maddox who returned the ball 47 yards setting up Pickett's lone score of the night.
The Patriots first round pick Drake Maye started the second quarter and led his team on two drives: The first drive went eight plays, 38 yards and ended with a 51-yard Joey Slye field goal. The second drive was an eight-play, 49-yard effort that ended with Maye walking into the end zone from four yards out.
EAGLES COULD NOT GET ANYTHING GOING IN THE FIRST HALF
Tanner McKee kept the misery alive when, on the first drive of the second half, he fumbled the snap on a quarterback sneak on a fourth-and-one at the Patriots 37-yard line. He picked up the ball but did get the yard needed to keep the drive alive.
On his next drive, McKee again failed to convert a fourth-and-one to keep a drive alive. McKee handed the ball to Lew Nichols at the New England 32-yard line. The run was stopped at the line of scrimmage.
While Drake Maye on occasion looked like a first-round pick Thursday night he too struggles at times. Maye finished 6 of 11 for 47 yards. His quarterback rating was 65.3.
Nolan Smith, Jr sacked Maye with 3:27 left the third quarter that forced a punt. Nolan's stock seemed to drop in the first quarter when he was charged with a roughing the passer penalty.
Against Baltimore, Smith sacked Devin Leary deep in the third quarter, but defensive coordinator Vic Fangio dismissed the sack as a lucky play.
Enter quarterback Will Grier in a 2:37 of third quarter. The six-year backup signal caller did lead the Birds on an 11-play, 56-yard drive that ended with a Jake Elliott 38-yard field goal to make the score 10-6 with 13:05 left in the game.
But that was it for Grier. The Pats tacked on another field goal to make the score 13-6.
But in a move Sirianni said was planned, he put McKee back into the game...and the former Stanford strand out produced the game-winning drive.
With one last shot to win this meaningless game, Pats head coach Jerod Mayo put in his fourth quarterback of the game, Bailey Zappe.
Zapped who took the field with 2:25 left and New England set up at its own 17-yard line. He got the Patriots to their own 46 before third-string center Liam Fornadel delivered a low snap that the Eagles recovered to end the game.
A REAL FEEL-GOOD MOMENT FOR THE EAGLES
Former Penn State linebacker Brandon Smith pounced on the ball and the game was mercifully ended.
But is was the only really feel-good moment of the game....well, outside the interception by Maddox it was.
But still, for a guy like Smith, plays like that can make or break his chances of making the roster.
Coaches want to see how a player does in a game-setting with the stadium lights on an fans in the stands. To make the play that wins a game, albeit a preseason game, gains the trust of coaches.
Smith spent the better part of the 2023 season on the Eagles practice squad after being waived by the Carolina Panthers.
“It was really just a play we had dialed up,” Smith said at his locker after the game. “It gave me a jump to really be able to see that mishap with the quarterback and the center. At that point it was just a race to the football. I knew that it was going to call the game for us and seal everything. I just gave everything that I had to make sure I got it done.”
Vic Fangio last week talked about players can have an opportunity right in front of them on the field, and some players freeze up. Smith didn't. He made the play.
It is impossible for Fangio and Sirianni not to see Smith's stock rise. Smith was asked if he moved the needle in his coaches' eyes.
“It definitely does,” Smith said. “For me, I don't really like to harp on the things I do well. I really want to just limit the mishaps and stuff like that.
“So that's really the big thing within this process that I have been harping on. Like I know that there's going to be more good than bad. But let's try to make the little bit of bad of me come out and can be corrected with a little bit of tweaking.”
Smith said his teammates were happy and cheered him making the winning play.
“I'm just looking forward to what's going to be said at film,” Smith said. “I want to be harsh and cruel as far as the things I didn't do as well and could have done differently. But we got the win and now we move forward.” *
Email Al Thompson at al.thompson@footballstories.com
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