The New England Patriots intercepted quarterback Sam Darnold three times on Sunday afternoon, while Damien Harris and Hunter Henry both scored touchdowns in leading the New England Patriots to their third straight victory with a 24-6 win over the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
J.C. Jackson had two of the interceptions, one of which he returned for an 88 yard touchdown in the third quarter. Harris had a three yard scoring run and Henry had a seven yard TD reception from Mac Jones in the second quarter. New England (5-4) controlled the running game rushing for 151 yards and holding Carolina to 78 on the day. The Panthers (4-5) were able to manage just a pair of field goals from Zane Gonzalez. The Patriots have won four of their last five games after a 1-3 start climbing over .500 for first time this season, and are now only 1/2 back of the Buffalo Bills for first place in the AFC East.
Jones was 12-18 passing for 139 yards with one touchdown and one interception and lost a fumble as well. Jones also became just the third rookie quarterback (Andrew Luck 2012, Dak Prescott 2016) to have five or more wins, 10 or more TD passes, and 2,000 or more yards in his first nine career games. Rhamondre Stevenson had 10 carries for 62 yards to lead the ground game, while Brandon Bolden had eight for 54 yards. Harris had 15 rushes for 30 yards and one touchdown before him and Stevenson both left with injuries. Stevenson also had two receptions for 44 yards, with Kendrick Bourne (3-34), Bolden (2-27), and Henry two for 19 yards and a score also chipping in. Lawrence Guy, Adrian Phillips, Matt Judon, Davon Godchaux, Joejuan Williams, and Myles Bryant each had three tackles. Judon added a sack, while Jackson had the two interceptions and Jamie Collins had the other pick. Darnold was 16-33 passing in the loss for Carolina for 172 yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions. Darnold now has nine career interceptions against New England. Christian McCaffery returned from injury and rushed 14 times for 52 yards and also was the leading receiver with four catches for 54 yards. Shaq Thompson had six tackles and former Patriot Stephon Gilmore also had an interception. The Patriots return home to take on the Cleveland Browns next Sunday at 1 p.m.
