Patriots-Texans takeaways: Thornton does well with opportunity, Cunningham shines, OL struggles

The New England Patriots played their first game of their 2023 NFL season Thursday night, hosting the Houston Texans at Gillette Stadium. The addition of Bill O’Brien was noticeable, along with the 2023 rookie class looking excellent. Mac Jones didn’t play, so the Patriots had second-year quarterback Bailey Zappe start. Zappe completed 12 of 14 passes for 79 yards with zero touchdowns and zero interceptions. The Patriots rookies had a chance to play in a real game for the first time and the results were mixed.

Here are six takeaways from the preseason opener:

Tyquan Thornton does well with the opportunity

The Patriots wide-out had been trending in the wrong direction recently. Especially when it was reported newcomer Demario “Pop” Douglas was taking first-team reps over Thornton. However, the former Baylor receiver didn’t listen to the outside noise and played well Thursday night. The 23-year-old had the best catch of the night, a 27-yard leaping grab from Bailey Zappe. Thornton would end the night with two catches for 31 yards. After a mediocre start to training camp, it was a great sign to see Thornton’s performance on the field. Thornton should get more playing time in Green Bay when the Patriots face off with the Packers on Saturday, August 18th.

Malik Cunningham will make the roster, but at what position

Malik Cunningham, the duel-threat athlete, was the other rookie who impressed himself Thursday night. The Louisville product energized Gillette Stadium after the Patriot’s offense couldn’t string together plays. Cunningham finished as the Patriots leading rusher with 34 yards, recording just five carries. On the passing side, Cunningham went 3-for-4 for 19 passing yards, and his lone incompletion was a 30-yard bomb to Tre Nixon, which went through the receiver’s hands.

Backup offensive line struggles

The Offensive line was awful; the offense couldn’t do anything productive. The Patriots final drive of the first half ended on a brutal sack on third-and-5. The Patriots could only run for 78 yards on 25 carries, as the unit couldn’t create running lanes for Kevin Harris, J.J. Taylor, and Pierre Strong Jr. The newly acquired Patriots lineman didn’t have promising debuts, and veteran Conor McDermott had a rough night. He was penalized for a false start in the second quarter and had trouble winning against his matchup.

Several Patriots starters didn’t see playing time.

Head coach Bill Belichick took the cautious approach and gave several veteran starters the night off. In addition to the numerous veterans who didn’t play, nine players were not in uniform. That usually means those players are dealing with some injury. Jonathan Jones, Ronnie Perkins, Calvin Anderson (NFI), Ty Montgomery, Cody Davis (PUP), Trey Flowers, Bill Murray, Cole Strange, and Mike Onwenu (PUP) were all not in uniform. Meanwhile, third-round draft pick Marte Mapu didn’t play and was shadowing defensive play-caller Steve Belichick. Unfortunately, the Patriots suffered two injuries during the game, with offensive linemen Kody Russey and Carl Davis suffering injuries.

Jalen Mills will be a good safety for the Patriots this season.

The Patriots and Jalen Mills agreed to a four-year $24 million contract in free agency of 2021. But Mills would be making a position change; once a productive safety in Philadelphia, Bill Belichick had Jalen Mills play cornerback. Mills was an outside defensive back for the past two seasons but got released a couple of months after the season started. However, the Patriots would re-sign Mills quickly, and the Patriots announced the 29-year-old would play safely. On Thursday night, Mills excelled at the position and intercepted Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud in the first half. Mills will help fill the void that Devin McCourty left.

Keion White is looking like a 1st round pick.

At 290 pounds, second-round pick Keion White is turning heads early in the season. Early in the game, White was rushing through the Texans lineman and was winning his 1V1 matchups. In the second quarter, Texans running back Dare Ogunbowale botched a pitch from quarterback Davis Mills; White took out the running back, which forced a fumble. Fellow teammate Calvin Munson recovered the football. The former Georgia Tech alum was disruptive all night and finished the game with three tackles and a QB hit. The Patriots shouldn’t play the rookie much more in the preseason.