The Patriots took down the Eagles 24-21 in what was a thrilling first victory. With the team resting its starters, players fighting for roster spots battled it out for sixty minutes, producing a very entertaining football game.

Behren Morton: Punter?

As the Patriots lined up for their third punt of the night, none other than third-string quarterback Behren Morton jogged onto the field. Morton stood 13 yards behind long snapper Julian Ashby and awaited his snap. The Texas Tech alum’s punt traveled 48 yards and landed in the end zone for a touchback, recording a hang time of 4.40 seconds.

Morton is no stranger to kicking the football, as he was the punter and kicker for his high school team. The Texas native even punted for teams at his Texas Tech pro day earlier this year.

“No, it really isn’t [something he’s worked on recently]," Morton said in his postgame press conference. “I did in high school and I loved it, loved to punt and kick. Went to college, was always the backup in case anything ever happened, but never hit any in practice for my five years at [Texas] Tech.”

Despite this, Morton held his own, hitting punts of 48, 43 and 42 yards. The reason his punting duties were needed was due to starter Bryce Baringer not feeling great.

“Well, I just assume all the quarterbacks, they do their little punt thing and see how close they can get it to the goal line, so I figured he could punt,” Vrabel joked. “Bryce wasn’t feeling great after the first two punts, so I figured instead of risking anything there, with Bryce or with Andy, that Behren was able to get us out of there.”

Baringer did not show any signs of limping or walking gingerly and was still able to hold for Borregales after he stopped punting. Baringer, who is having a good summer, would be a massive loss.

Injuries hit hard:

The injury bug hit the Patriots hard, as the team lost tackle Marcus Bryant, linebackers Khalil Jacobs and Chad Muma and punter Bryce Baringer.

Bryant, who has looked like the team’s swing tackle, went down with an injury after Eagles cornerback Kapena Gushiken rolled up on him trying to tackle running back Lan Larison. If it is a severe injury, it would be a substantial loss for the Patriots.

The 2025 seventh-round pick has had a fantastic summer and appeared to overtake 2026 first-round pick Caleb Lomu for the team’s swing tackle role. There have been no updates on whether the injury is long-term yet.

The Patriots’ depth at linebacker was already paper-thin before Jacobs and Muma went down with their injuries. Jacobs was injured after making a diving tackle on a kickoff. Eagles wide receiver Erik Ezukanma landed on Jacobs after the tackle was made.

The undrafted free agent was making a strong case for the roster and had looked like the team’s fourth linebacker all summer.

As for Muma, his injury did not look to be too worrisome, as the linebacker popped right back up on the play he was said to be hurt on. Muma was having a strong summer before the team’s first preseason game, when he struggled.

His struggles continued into the second preseason contest, as Muma missed tackles and assignments throughout the game. The University of Wyoming product missed multiple practices following the team’s first preseason game, with a presumed injury. Muma’s injury against Philadelphia could have been a re-aggravation of his previous one.

Lan Larison bounces back:

After what was a poor showing for second-year running back Lan Larison in the Patriots’ first preseason contest, the UC Davis product responded with a great performance.

Larison was nothing special on the ground, rushing for 33 yards on nine carries; however, he was fantastic catching the football. The running back caught three passes for 41 yards, breaking tackles and fighting for extra yards along the way.

As the deadline for roster cuts fast approaches, Larison was finally able to flash. We saw Jam Miller stand out in the team’s first preseason contest and Hassan Haskins earn more reps in joint practices. Saturday was Larison’s time.

The Patriots’ third running back competition has been a wild ride, with almost every back looking like the leader in the clubhouse at some point. With just seven days until the initial 53-man roster has to be finalized, Larison has the lead.

Morton leads a successful two-minute drill:

Throughout the summer, the Patriots have been working on some sort of variation of a “two-minute drill.” The coaching staff typically puts just over one minute on the clock, as the team is tasked with driving down the field.

In Saturday’s game, Behren Morton was put in a live two-minute drill. Although the Patriots do run these drills often, Morton has failed to see many if any reps during this drill. It is typically just the top two offenses, who take part.

Despite this, Morton handled the situation like a pro and with three minutes and 33 seconds on the clock, the rookie drove the team down the field for a touchdown.

The eleven-play 73-yard drive included two third down and one fourth down conversions. The fourth down conversion consisted of Morton firing a strike to rookie wide receiver Kyle Dixon on a quick out route.

“I thought it was going on the other side, but, you know, Coach [Todd] Downing tells us run every route like you're getting the ball, and you do the small things like that like you're supposed to," Dixon told Ethan Hurwitz after the game.

Just two plays later, the Texas Tech product found Nick DeGennaro for the game-winning score. DeGennaro ran a go route and easily beat Eagles cornerback Isaiah Bolden, who did not take his first step until DeGennaro was already behind him.

It was very impressive to see the rookie quarterback show such composure and calmness in a high-pressure situation.

What they said:

“I do not think we have a very deep team, Mike [Reiss], so I think we have to make sure that we are preparing our football team and that we are doing everything that we can to keep our best players available,” Mike Vrabel told reporters in his postgame press conference.