Tom Brady

After sitting out the first two preseason games, Tom Brady made his preseason debut on Thursday night.

Brady played into the second quarter, completing eight of 12 passes for 75 yards.

“There is a lot that we need to do. There were a lot of good things, but a lot of things that we need to clean up. A lot of long-yardage situations, too many penalties. We got to get back to work,” said Brady after the game.

The night started out as a frustrating one for Brady as the Patriots offense struggled to move the ball early on due to penalties and drops.

After one series, Brady could be seen tossing his helmet as he walked to the sideline.

However, the Patriots offense got it going at the end of the first quarter.

Brady led the Patriots on a 15-play drive that extended into the second quarter and was capped off by a one-yard touchdown run by James Develin.

A highlight of the drive was Brady connecting with tight end Ryan Izzo for an 18-yard gain.

PHOTO: Peter Bond/Flickr Commons

Patriots Defense

The much-hyped Patriots defense was on display Thursday night with just about all the starters playing, including Michael Bennett.

“It was great, I think today we talked about getting off to a good start against a team that is very high power on offense. I thought we did a good job of first stopping the run and then getting a few good rushes in there,” said Patriots safety Devin McCourty after the game.

On Carolina’s first drive, Cam Newton and company managed just six yards on three plays before punting the ball away.

On the Panthers second series, New England’s Kyle Van Noy sacked Newton on second down, but stayed down with an apparent knee injury.

He walked off the field on his own an went to the blue medical tent behind the Patriots bench. He would return to the game on the Patriots next defensive series.

Newton left the game after just two offensive series with an injury.

PHOTO: Jeffrey Beall/Wikipedia

Wide Receiver Battle

With Josh Gordon and Demaryius Thomas set to return, the Patriots wide receiver depth chart is significantly more crowded then it was at the start of camp.

The two bubble players that saw action on Thursday night were Phillip Dorsett and rookie Jakobi Meyers.

Dorsett hauled in seven catches for 47 yards, with the majority of them coming from Tom Brady early in the game.

“Phillip is a guy that I have played a lot of football with. Experience is a great thing in football if you use it well, and I think our experience together pays off. I read his body language. I think a great think about Phil is that he takes advantage of his opportunities,” said Brady.

Meyers hauled in seven catches for 74 yards in the game, but struggled to get on the same page with Brady.

On one play, Brady tried to throw a deep ball to Meyers down the sideline, but Meyers stopped running.

“I think for all of us, you play with guys that are new to the offense and sometimes they think they are not part of the rout, and then the defense plays a certain coverage and they are part of the rout. That’s part of early in the season, that’s part of this time of year,” said Brady about the play.

On another play, Brady threw the ball behind Meyers, who could not haul it in after it hit his hands.

Meyers was also called for a holding penalty that brought back a long Sony Michel run.

All of Meyers catches came with Jarrett Stidham under center.

Other receivers on the bubble, Maurice Harris and Braxton Berrios, did not play in the game, likely putting them behind when it comes to getting a roster spot.

PHOTO: Patriots media website

Sony Michel

Running back Sony Michel made his preseason debut on Thursday night and was impressive.

Michel had 10 carries for 36 yards in his time on the field.

Michel broke several tackles, ran through contact and made sharp jump cuts.

He broke a long  30-yard run in the first quarter, but it was called back due a holding call on rookie Jakobi Meyers.

Michel started training camp on the physically unable to perform list (PUP) after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his knee in the offseason.

PHOTO: Patriots media website 

Jake Bailey

Earlier this week, the Patriots released veteran punter Ryan Allen, giving the starting job to rookie punter Jake Bailey.

In Thursday’s preseason game, Bailey hit four punts for a combined 192 yards. That is an average of 48 yards per punt.

He also hit two punts inside the Panthers 20-yard line.

“He has done some different things for us. He was the better punter, he kicks off and he holds, so we will see how it goes,” said Patriots head coach Bill Belichick after the game.

Bailey held for kicker Stephen Gostkowski throughout the game.

On one field goal, Bailey did not get the laces out and Gostkowski missed the kick.

PHOTO: Patriots media website