4 plays that stood out from the Patriots’ second preseason game

Was Thursday’s Patriots preseason game the most exciting or informative affair? Not entirely.

New England didn’t see Philadelphia’s starting units, making it difficult to truly evaluate the Patriots’ 35-0 drubbing of the Eagles.

How good were the quarterbacks really? Were they both just balling against second- and third-string scrubs?

Is the first-team defense actually going to shut out every team it faces and dominate them the way they stifled Philly?

Whatever one thinks of those questions, there are some things the eye test alone can tell you. For one thing, yes: both Cam Newton and Mac Jones were good on Thursday, and they both are implementing things we’ve seen them practice during training camp.

Plus, the defense didn’t just play well because of sheer physical dominance. The unit also played with discipline and experience, two things that translate no matter who you play against.

Here are some things we noticed:

Cam Newton works on the little things.

Everyone saw Newton slice and dice the reserve Eagles secondary on play-action passes and step up in the pocket to drill throws over the middle Thursday.

But lest you think he only completed deep digs and check downs to running backs, there was one throw from Newton that may have showcased his comfort in the Patriots offense more than any other.

Just after hooking up with Kendrick Bourne for a big 23-yard completion, the veteran quarterback hit Jakobi Meyers for 10 yards on a hitch for another first down.

This one required a touch of finesse, timing and arm strength.

The Eagles, as they did for much of this week’s joint practices, sit back in zone coverage, hoping to force Patriots quarterbacks to take short throws. In this case, it looked like Philadelphia was playing Cover 4, with the boundary corners getting depth toward the sidelines, two deep safeties off the screen and linebackers handling the underneath routes.

Newton took advantage of that softened coverage frequently in Tuesday’s practice, much to the chagrin of K’Von Wallace. But on 1st-and-10 from Philly’s 32-yard line on the offense’s second possession, Newton flips the script and takes a bigger chunk of yardage.

He gives an exaggerated look and mini-pump fake toward Jakob Johnson’s flat route out of the backfield. Patriots quarterbacks practice this exact maneuver in warmup drills during practice.

Its purpose: draw linebacker Genard Avery, who is responsible for Johnson, off his throwing window to Meyers’s comeback route at the sticks. Once the linebacker vacates the area, Newton drills the first down just in front of cornerback Zech McPhearson.

Plays like that, while not super electrifying, show you that a quarterback knows how to get what he’s looking for offensively and can manipulate a defense into giving it to him.

Bill Belichick and Josh McDaniels have been hinting at Newton’s improved comfort with the Patriots offense all summer. After some flashes of it here and there in practice, we finally saw it consistently in a game setting.

The Patriots’ linebackers keep cleaning up.

All is not necessarily perfect with the Patriots’ defense at the moment.

The unit is still missing its best player (cornerback Stephon Gilmore), and the defensive line has been moved off the ball more easily at times than you’d like to see through two preseason games.

But the starting defensive unit has one significant trump card in its pocket: its linebackers look awesome.

Matthew Judon has been the best player on the field each time he’s stepped on it the past two weeks. Kyle Van Noy had a big third-down stuff on the Eagles’ second offensive possession. Josh Uche flashed last week (though he left this contest early), and Ja’Whaun Bentley looks comfortable.

But if you’re wondering what Dont’a Hightower’s been up to in his return from the lineup, don’t worry. He’s definitely there.

With the Eagles facing 1st-and-20 and trying to steal a few yards on the ground, Hightower teamed up with Judon to help grind the play to a halt.

Philadelphia runs a split zone, with the offensive line flowing to the right side while tight end Jack Stoll (47) comes across the formation to cut off Uche’s backside pursuit.

Judon stacks up right tackle Matt Pryor with ease to hold the edge, something he’s proven adept at so far with the Patriots. So Eagles running back Jordan Howard sticks his foot in the ground looking for the natural cutback lane built into these plays.

Enter Hightower, who reads the play and bursts through the hole before a lineman can reach him at the second level and forces Howard to run into a wall for a short gain. The longtime linebacker’s diagnosis is astounding; he surges forward into the gap while Bentley and strong safety Adrian Phillips are still trying to find the football.

Power. Versatility. Explosiveness. Experience. The Patriots linebacking corps has a little bit of everything.

As long as the defensive line can hold their own (as they did here) and keep the linebackers clean, that unit is going to relentlessly harass opposing offenses.

Mac Jones’s best throw you might have missed.

Eventually, Jones is going to hit on one of these deep balls to a Patriots receiver. Truthfully, it might have to be Nelson Agholor, because reserves like Kristian Wilkerson and N’Keal Harry haven’t gotten it done for him. (To be fair, Wilkerson’s “drop” was a good play by the defense, but let’s not digress.)

In the meantime, there are plenty of other throws the first-round pick makes that Patriots fans can salivate over.

One play in particular from Thursday night stands out from Jones, and it’s notable because it showcases his ability to thrive as a strictly pocket-passer.

On 2nd-and-7 inside Eagles territory early in the third quarter, Jones dropped back to pass against what looks like a Cover 2 look — two deep safeties (out of the picture) with cornerbacks playing as extra flat defenders.

The Patriots run somewhat of a similar concept to the aforementioned Newton completion to Meyers: a running back comes into the flat to try and occupy underneath defenders while outside receiver Gunner Olszewski sits down on a hitch route. Jones’s challenge here is the same: get the flat defender, Michael Jacquet (38) to bite on J.J. Taylor long enough to open up a window for Olszewski.

While that’s happening, though, right guard Marcus Martin is getting smoked by T.Y. McGill, who storms through and forces Jones to step up. McGill even gets his hand on the football.

But Jones handles the situation masterfully. He absorbs the contact and holds onto the football, looks off Jacquet and rifles a shot to Olszewski between two defenders for the completion. The fact that he did all that in less than two seconds is impressive.

If there’s one quibble here, it’s that Jones could’ve held the ball tighter to his frame to avoid possibly being stripped here. But his ability to make subtle moves in the pocket, stay collected and keep his eyes downfield will allow him to survive despite his inability to threaten teams with his legs.

In short, that’s a grown-man play by Jones.

Rhamondre Stevenson: Baby Beast Mode?

Let’s put that late-game fumble out of our minds (though Ivan Fears certainly won’t) and appreciate what the fourth-round back out of Oklahoma did well for a moment.

For the second straight week, Stevenson ran hard and ran well behind the Patriots offensive line and scored two touchdowns. He also got into the game early, playing with the second unit Jones oversaw in the second quarter.

As with last week, he reminded everyone he’s more than just a battering ram with legs. This 230-pound cannonball can dance, too.

His 11-yard in the third quarter put everything he has to offer on display.

The Patriots run a power toss sweep to the left side, with left tackle Yodny Cajuste and fullback Jakob Johnson leading the way. Wilkerson also supplies a good crack block to wall off the defensive end from the play.

First, Stevenson displays good vision, cutting inside of Cajuste and Johnson as they both kick their defenders out toward the sideline.

Then, he shows off some quick feet, making Shaun Bradley miss in space with a cut and head fake and juking cornerback LaVert Hill to his knees a moment later.

300-pound Raequan Williams comes in with a heavy shoulder hoping to square the rookie up at unawares, but Stevenson spins and bounces right off him to pick up another couple of yards before finally going down.

On one hand, it’s hard to imagine he’ll get much burn this year with so many veteran backs ahead of him on the depth chart. He’ll make the team, but that redshirt year does look like it’s coming (especially after that fumble).

But whatever ends up happening with his roster status, he’s been arguably the most fun offensive player to watch in preseason when he has the ball in his hands.