Patriots: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Pre-season game 3)

Patriots 27 Redskins 24

The Good:

Tom Brady was 8 of 11 passing for 95 yards and a TD in the first frame. Randy Moss has five catches for 63 yards. Brady hooked up twice with Moss for touchdowns for the first time since the 2007 season.

Patriots cornerback Jonathan Wilhite stepped in front of a Colt Brennan offering (intended for D.J. Hackett) and took the interception 99 yards the other way for a touchdown

Stephen Gostkowski booted a 31-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining to lift the Patriots over the Redskins, 27-24

The Bad:

Tom Brady, appeared to tweak his right shoulder on a hit from Albert Haynesworth late in the first half. He briefly appeared on the sideline to start the second half, but returned to the locker room before the Patriots' first offensive series, turning the reigns over to Kevin O'Connell.

Patriots rookie defensive back Pat Chung fumbled a punt for the seconds straight week, this one bouncing off his helmet. Also for the second straight week, fellow rookie defensive back Darius Butler bailed him out by recovering the fumble

Matthew Slater had a fair catch interference for the second week in a row. It's an inexcusable penalty, but it is unlikely to affect his roster spot

One area that stood out is how the nickel package (5 defensive backs) couldn’t consistently get off the field. While there were signs of life with the pass rush at times, the Patriots couldn’t consistently synch up their rush with coverage.

The Ugly:

The 73-yard busted play to tight end Chris Cooley!

Marko Mitchell hauled in a 33-yard touchdown pass from Colt Brennan to tie the game late in the third quarter. The drive covered 44 yards on five plays over 2:41. The short field came as a result of a Kevin O'Connell interception.

Note - The Patriots have made a surprising move at quarterback Sunday, informing backup Kevin O'Connell that he has been waived, according to a league source.

Game Notes:

Patriots coach Bill Belichick didn't provide much insight into the status of quarterback Tom Brady in his postgame press conference with the media. "He's got some bumps and bruises like everyone else who played in the game," said Belichick.

Quotes:

"I mean, it wasn't like I was hitting Gisele or something; he's the quarterback. It was good, it was fine. I mean, I was trying to tackle him, but I wasn't trying to hurt him. I'm not that type of a player, you know? I'm actually a big Tom Brady fan. I'm a big Patriots fan. I've always like the Patriots, I've always liked Coach Belichick. I just like the way [Brady] is." -- Redskins DT Albert Haynesworth

"I’m sure he has some bumps and bruises like everybody else who played in the game." -- Patriot Coach Bill Belichick