National Football League

Jimmy Garoppolo knocked out of Dolphins game after brutal hit

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:13 p.m. ET

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Chris Chase

Jimmy Garoppolo had picked up where he'd left off, getting New England to a 21-0 lead thanks to three touchdown passes and 234 yards through the air. Five quarters into his career, the NFL's greatest question mark was playing like one of the NFL's top quarterbacks. And then, disaster.

The Tom Brady replacement needed his own replacement Sunday after taking a shot from Kiko Alonso of the Miami Dolphins while completing a pass in the second quarter. He left the field under his own power, but with a sagging throwing shoulder, in obvious pain. Rookie Jacoby Brisett, third on the depth chart this preseason and a third-rounder out of N.C. State, came into the game for Garoppolo.

It has all been going so well for the Pats. Garoppolo, filling in for Tom Brady on his NFL-mandated four-week vacation, was looking like the greatest backup quarterback since, well, Brady himself. In Week 1, he went into NFC favorite Arizona and came out with a victory, then looked like vintage-era Brady in getting New England out to a 21-0 lead in Week 2 against the Miami Dolphins.

The bright side for New England (you have to squint to see it) is that the Patriots don't really need Garoppolo the rest of the game. It's hard to imagine Miami coming back from a 21-point deficit no matter who's playing quarterback for the other team. The bad news: New England plays on a short week when the Texans come to town on Thursday.

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