FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Jimmy Garoppolo made his preseason debut, spreading the ball around for 168 yards, and Jamie Collins added a 43-yard interception return for a touchdown as the New England Patriots beat the New Orleans Saints 34-22 on Thursday night.Garoppolo played the entire first half as he preps to start the first four games of the regular season in place of Tom Brady, who will be serving a suspension for his involvement in the Deflategate case. Brady was not in the building Thursday, excused by the team to attend memorial services for a family member.Saints running back Mark Ingram had an early fumble, but also had two 1-yard touchdown runs in an extended night that saw him play most of the first half. Second-year quarterback Garrett Grayson threw an early interception, but completed a few long passes to finish 10 for 16 for 133 yards.Defensive end Kasim Edebali had two first-quarter sacks.After a slow start, Garoppolo completed several long passes and finished 11 of 18. He converted a fourth-down run.Trey Flowers added a 17-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, scooping up the loose ball created by his sack of Luke McCown.INJURY UPDATEPatriots: It wasnt all good news for New Englands offense. It likely lost rookie receiver Malcolm Mitchell for the foreseeable future after he sustained a left elbow injury late in the second quarter.Mitchell, a fourth-round draft pick out of Georgia, caught a pass near the sideline. But as he was dragged down from behind by Saints cornerback DeVante Harris, Mitchells arm bent awkwardly as he landed on the ground. He held his elbow as he was helped to the locker room by trainers.ROOKIE WATCHSaints: WR Michael Thomas was targeted five times in the first half. He caught four for 67 yards, including a long of 28.Patriots: CB Cyrus Jones, New Englands top pick of the second round, had a fumble recovery and started in the base defense while handling the early punt return duties. Undrafted free agent CB Crevon LeBlanc might have had the defensive play of the night, intercepting McCowns pass in the end zone with one hand. LG Joe Thuney also was in the starting lineup.SHORT TIMERGaroppolos extended night was in contrast to a very short one for Saints quarterback Drew Brees. He played in only the opening series of the game before taking a seat. He made the most of it, completing a 37-yard pass to Brandin Cooks on the first offensive play of the night.FAVORITE TARGETMartellus Bennett, who New England acquired from the Bears in an offseason trade, was Garoppolos favorite target early on. He was targeted four times and had three receptions for 33 yards.MISSING IN ACTIONPatriots: Including Brady, a total of 20 players did not play for New England. The list included TE Rob Gronkowski, WRs Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola and Chris Hogan, CB Logan Ryan and RB Dion Lewis. Also out was Rob Ninkovich, who has been absent since leaving practice Tuesday with an arm injury.Saints: Eight players did not see action, including WR Jake Lampman and CBs Keenan Lewis and Damian Swann.QUOTABLESaints: I think that was important. I really came out and the first play, I said, `Hey, got to set the tone. Start the game off right, Edebali said. I thought (the defense) was able to do that, and we just have to continue to be better.Patriots: The scramble play, it didnt make the sideline very happy. But it was fourth down, so the football player inside of me kicked in, I guess, Garoppolo said of his 4-yard run in in the second quarter to pick up a first down.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower Peyton Manning Jersey . 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The College Football Playoff selection committee showed us Tuesday that a team can drop from No. 11 to out of the rankings entirely with one bad loss, as Florida did.It showed us that a top-four team can suffer a bad loss to an unranked opponent, as Texas A&M did to Mississippi State, and fall just four spots because of the high regard the committee has for a head-to-head result, such as the Aggies win over No. 9 Auburn.More than anything, Tuesdays rankings were a reminder that there are 12 people -- not computers -- deciding the top four teams in the country, and quite simply, they are free to change their minds on a weekly basis (hello, No. 4 Washington).All the more reason for the top contenders to leave no doubt they deserve a spot in a semifinal game by avoiding an upset with just three weeks remaining in the regular season. No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Clemson and No. 3 Michigan are all playing unranked opponents. No. 4 Washington is playing a ranked opponent only because the committee put USC in at No. 20 this week, and deservedly so, after the Trojans have reeled off five straight wins.No. 5 Ohio State faces an unranked opponent, and so does No. 6 Louisville. Each of the top six teams, with the exception of Washington, are favored by at least 20 points.So what happens if -- gasp! -- theres an upset this week?Lets take a look at the possible scenarios:If No. 1 Alabama loses to Mississippi State: Not going to happen, but if it does, Alabama remains in the same must-win situation its in now, meaning it has to beat Auburn in the Iron Bowl on Nov. 26. Regardless of what happens to Alabama on Saturday, if Auburn wins out, the Tigers will win the SEC West. One loss didnt kept the Tide out of the playoff in each of the past two years, and it would not do so this year. But a loss could drop Alabama out of the top four next week, just as it did Texas A&M. Ohio State (No. 10 Penn State) and Louisville (to No. 2 Clemson) would each have a better loss, and who you lose to matters. Thats why the Aggies, having lost to the Tide, were ahead of Washington last week, and why Ohio State didnt get the same treatment Tuesday. Then again, one thing that hasnt been up for debate in the committee room is Alabamas status as No. 1. It might not drop out of the top four at all.If No. 2 Clemson loses to Pitt: The Tigers would still be on the fast track to the ACC championship game, and they would still have the head-to-head win over Louisville -- two criteria in the committees protocol that would be strikes against Louisville. Its unlikely Clemson would fall behind Louisville, especially considering the committee didnt drop No. 8 Texas A&M behind No. 9 Auburn on Tuesday in spite of a bad loss, specifically because it wanted to continue to honor the Aggies win in their head-to-head matchup. The question is whether Clemson would fall behind Ohio State. The Tigers would have better wins than the Buckeyes (Auburn, No. 18 Florida State and Louisville) but a worse loss.If No. 3 Michigan loses to Iowa: The Wolverines would probably drop out of the top four in the committees third rankings, but it wouldnt keep them out of the Big Ten championship game, which keeps their playoff hopes alive. Michigan owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over Penn State, but it would have to win out (including a victory over Ohio State in Columbus) to win the Big Ten East.If No. 4 Washington loses to No. 20 USC: Do not -- repeat, do not -- write off the Huskies. If their only loss is to a ranked USC team, and Washington goes on to win the Pac-12 championship, it would still have three wins against Top 25 teaams (No.dddddddddddd 15 Utah, No. 23 Washington State and the winner of the Pac-12 South in the title game). However, in that scenario, without a conference title, Washington would be compared against the other one-loss teams and probably fall behind Ohio State and possibly Louisville in the committees next rankings. There would still be enough left on Washingtons schedule, though, to potentially close that gap in the end. Washington plays the 12th-most-difficult remaining schedule, according to ESPNs Football Power Index. The only game Washington absolutely cannot afford to lose is the Apple Cup, because if Washington State enters that game undefeated in league play (or even with one loss) and beats the Huskies, it captures the Pac-12 North.If No. 5 Ohio State loses to Maryland: Buh-bye, Buckeyes. Forget about Michigan for a minute. Ohio State would then need Penn State to lose two more games, an unlikely scenario considering the Nittany Lions remaining schedule includes Indiana, Rutgers and Michigan State. ESPNs FPI favors PSU in each of its remaining games by at least 80 percent.SuperlativesPlayer in the spotlight: Washington WR John Ross. QB Jake Browning gets all the ink for the Huskies, but Ross 14 touchdown catches leads all Power 5 players. An FBS-best 10 of those have come in the red zone, and Ross is four touchdowns away from tying the schools single-season record for receiving touchdowns.Matchup to watch: Washington defense vs. USC QB Sam Darnold. The Huskies have one of the best defenses in the country, but how much will they miss their leading pass-rusher, Joe Mathis, in this matchup? Mathis has missed the past three games and is out for the season with a foot injury, and Darnold has been integral to the Trojans five-game winning streak, throwing 18 touchdowns and just three interceptions during that span. His mobility is a big reason no Power 5 player has been sacked at a lower rate (1.4 percent).Upset watch: This is only the Wolverines second trip outside their home state all season. Its also the second time under Kirk Ferentz that Iowa has faced an opponent thats 9-0 or better. The last time? 2008, when Iowa upset No. 3 Penn State. The Hawkeyes were 5-4 then, too.Remember when: The Oregon-Stanford game was big? Theres still plenty at stake for both teams, but this is the first time since 2008 that neither team will win the Pac-12 title.Dont forget about: No. 16 West Virginia at Texas. Mountaineers fans want to know why their one-loss team is ranked so low, and selection committee chair Kirby Hocutt said its because they have played only one team ranked in the Top 25, No. 13 Oklahoma State, and lost. Texas is coming off back-to-back wins and will have home-field advantage against a Big 12 team that clearly has no margin for error.Under-the-radar game: No. 9 Auburn at Georgia. The focus has already shifted to the Iron Bowl, but wait a minute: This isnt a gimme road trip. The last top-10 team to visit Sanford Stadium? No. 9 Auburn, which lost 34-7 in 2014. Georgia has won eight of the past 10 games in this series.Dubious distinction: Notre Dame plays Army on Saturday in San Antonio, and the only year in which Notre Dame lost to both Army and Navy was 1944, according to ESPN Stats & Info. Each of those games was played at a neutral site.Hand it over: Clemson can clinch the Atlantic Division with a win against Pitt. Clemson hasnt lost to an unranked team at home since October 2008, when it lost to Georgia Tech. ' ' '
