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Pats punish Panthers
Brady, NE offense sharp while defense shines in 30-7 rout
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FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Tom Brady’s offense and the New England Patriots’ defense dominated the Carolina Panthers.

Brady threw for 204 yards and two touchdowns, Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 60-yard field goal and the Patriots shut down Cam Newton and the Panthers 30-7 on Friday night.

The third preseason game for both teams was no contest as the Patriots outgained the Panthers 405-271.

Brady led the Patriots (2-1) to scores on three of his five series and completed 17 of 21 passes. Newton was 8 for 12 for 88 yards and was sacked three times. All five of his possessions for the Panthers (1-2) ended in punts.

Both quarterbacks left after their first series of the third quarter.

Coach Ron Rivera would like to limit Newton’s running, despite his skill, and one dash appeared to stun him. He was tackled after running 7 yards when he couldn’t find a receiver. Trainers went on the field to check on him, and he was replaced by Derek Anderson before returning after one play.

GIANTS 35, JETS 24

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Geno Smith and Michael Vick each threw for a touchdown with the New York Jets’ starters, and the defense mostly shut down Eli Manning before the Giants’ backups rallied.

Rex Ryan announced that Smith will be the starting quarterback for the Jets (2-1) after a solid preseason. He was 9 of 14 for 137 yards, including a 1-yard scoring toss to rookie Jace Amaro.

Vick replaced Smith to start the second half, and after a rough first series in which he was sacked and then lost a fumble, led an 11-play, 76-yard drive that was capped by a go-ahead 3-yard TD toss to Eric Decker against the Giants’ backups. Vick finished 4 of 5 for 35 yards in his two series against the Giants (4-0).

LIONS 13, JAGUARS 12

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — Reggie Bush broke free for an 86-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, one of only a few offensive highlights as the Detroit Lions edged the Jacksonville Jaguars in a penalty-filled game.

Calvin Johnson played for the first time this preseason, catching two passes for 27 yards, but Matthew Stafford was intercepted once and the Lions (2-1) struggled in the red zone.

Blake Bortles threw for 158 yards and a touchdown for the Jaguars (1-2). Jacksonville started Chad Henne, but Bortles — the third pick in this year’s draft — was impressive in relief. He completed 10 of 16 passes, including a 13-yard touchdown to Allen Hurns.

SEAHAWKS 34, BEARS 6

SEATTLE (AP) — Russell Wilson threw for two touchdowns and ran for another score, helping the Seahawks to the easy win.

Already with a defense expected to be among the best in the NFL again, Wilson and the Seahawks can only hope the offensive efficiency of the past two weeks continues into the regular season.

Seattle scored touchdowns on its first four possessions, and Steven Hauschka hit a 59-yard field goal — what would be a franchise record in the regular season — on the final play of the first half. It was the ninth straight possession Seattle had scored with Wilson on the field.

Jay Cutler played the first half for Chicago and was 12 of 20 for 157 yards and an interception.

Wilson completed 15 of 20 passes for 202 yards, including scoring plays of 12 yards to Jermaine Kearse and 7 yards to Christine Michael. Wilson also had a 7-yard touchdown run.

Marshawn Lynch got his first taste of the preseason with three carries for 16 yards and capped Seattle’s opening drive with a 7-yard TD run before putting on basketball shoes and a baseball hat.