CINCINNATI – Jacoby Brissett didn’t have to put in a spectacular performance in his first start for the Patriots.
The experienced quarterback let Rhamondre Stevenson run against the Cincinnati Bengals, who, however, did not offer much resistance.
Stevenson ran for 120 yards and scored a touchdown in the first quarter, Joey Slye kicked three field goals and New England won in Jerod Mayo’s debut as coach, beating error-prone Cincinnati 16-10 on Sunday.
Brissett, the nine-year veteran Mayo chose as the starter instead of first-round draft pick Drake Maye, held the ball and kept the Patriots moving well enough to last longer than the slow-starting Bengals.
“He was great,” Mayo said. “He made plays with his arm, he made plays with his legs. He’s a tough guy. He took some hits in the game and I just thought, ‘Man, get up.’ He did everything we asked him to do.”
Mayo, a 38-year-old former Patriots linebacker, was previously an assistant to six-time Super Bowl winner Bill Belichick, who agreed to step down after a 4-13 record last season.
Owner Robert Kraft, who witnessed the decline of his team under Belichick after Tom Brady moved to Tampa Bay, presented Mayo with a game ball in the locker room.
“I’m so proud of the new players, the new coaches. People all had excuses that it couldn’t happen,” Kraft said. “But you all made it happen, and now I’m spoiled.”
Brissett led a methodical 80-yard drive in the first quarter that included six first downs and was capped by Stevenson’s 3-yard touchdown run.
The Bengals were simply bad in the first half and for much of the second half.
Cincinnati won and lost three of its first three possessions. Joe Burrow took the Bengals into the red zone in the second quarter and came away empty-handed.
Tight end Mike Gesicki appeared to make a falling catch in the back corner of the end zone, but a replay showed he had lost control.
On the next play, a third-and-11 attempt from the Patriots’ 15-yard line, Burrow reached tight end Tanner Hudson at the 9-yard line, but safety Kyle Dugger picked up the ball at the goal line and cornerback Marcus Jones grabbed it and ran 17 yards the other way.
Burrow, who started a season fully healthy for the first time since his rookie year in 2020, finished the game with a mediocre 21 of 29 passes for 164 yards.
His best receiver, Ja’Marr Chase, left everyone wondering if he would even play on Sunday. He participated in limited preseason workouts as he awaits an expected contract extension. He decided to play and caught six balls for 62 yards. Chase said he had been suffering from food poisoning for the past few days but felt fine for the game.
In the second half, Cincinnati’s Charlie Jones dropped a punt, leading to a Patriots field goal, and then the Bengals missed a fourth-down pass by a yard and lost the ball.
Cincinnati finally made it into the end zone late in the third quarter with a 5-yard run by Zack Moss. Evan McPherson cut New England’s lead to 16-10 with a 51-yard field goal.
The Bengals got the ball back with 2:56 left, failed to get a first down and opted to punt. Stevenson ran for two first downs and the Patriots ran out the clock.
“We lost the battle for possession 3-0,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said. “One on offense, one on special teams and one on a turnover on down. We missed a lot of tackles today. (That) led to a 170-yard run. There’s no recipe for winning in this style of play. That’s very clear. When you lose a battle for possession like that in Week 1, that’s a sign of defeat. We have to take responsibility for that.”
Brissett began his career with the Patriots in 2016 before playing for Indianapolis, Miami, Cleveland and Washington. Mayo had a better preseason, but Mayo said he chose Brissett because he didn’t want to put the rookie on the field in the opening game. Brissett finished 15 of 24 for 121 yards.
“I think I cried three times before the game,” Brissett said. “I cried when I got to the stadium and I cried when Mayo came up to me. He started laughing and said, ‘Man, you’re going to win us this game. You’re about to get going.’ I’d never heard a coach say that before. It meant a lot to me. I was definitely very emotional.”
Patriots: Host: Seattle next Sunday.
Bengals: Next Sunday in Kansas City.
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