



It was a day to forget for the New England Patriots.

The Pats endured a disastrous practice, as both injuries and poor play reared their ugly heads in a joint session with the New Orleans Saints.

Julian Edelman and veteran defensive end Rob Ninkovich both left practice early after suffering injuries. The extent of both players' injuries is yet to be established but Edelman, fresh off his return from a broken foot, appeared to have his lower leg examined by team doctors. The injuries only set the tone for what would be a nightmare for Bill Belichick and the coaching staff.

To say that the Patriots struggled in team drills would be putting it mildly. In 11-on-11s, Tom Brady was picked off by Saints' rookie defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, who rumbled down the field for a touchdown. Brady was unspectacular, going 11-19 with an interception. Deputy quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo didn't fair much better, going on a stretch of seven straight incompletions before being intercepted by De'Vante Harris. Garoppolo's intended targets shared much of the blame, with the 3rd-year quarterback falling victim to five drops on the day. He would finish 10-22 with one interception on the day. Even the ever-reliable Rob Gronkowski was off, dropping a sure-fire touchdown. Malcolm Mitchell did have a late touchdown grab, but it was not enough to offset the poor play overall.

Brady is 7 of 11 so far in 11 on 11s. 11 of 19 overall. Garoppolo is 7-15 with an INT in 11s, 10-22 INT overall. — Doug Kyed (@DougKyed) August 9, 2016

The defensive didn't fare much better. Drew Brees torched the Patriots secondary, going 21-25 with a touchdown pass to Brandin Cooks, who dominated his one-on-one matchup with Malcolm Butler for the majority of the day. The lone bright spots defensively were Cyrus Jones, who continued his impressive form at cornerback, and Duran Harmon, who added an interception off of Luke McCown.

Patriots defense struggled with Drew Brees who went 21/25 today — Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) August 9, 2016

Brees throws two perfect back-shoulder throws to Brandin Cooks, 1 for a deep gain and 1 for a TD. Malcolm Butler having trouble with Cooks — Ben Volin (@BenVolin) August 9, 2016

The Patriots will hope to fair much better in their first preseason opener against the Saints on Thursday night.