DETROIT -- The Detroit Lions put up a lot of points in beating the New England Patriots on Thursday night. But most of the talk afterward was about the suddenly stout Lions defence that forced four first-half turnovers en route to a 40-9 victory. "Thats a Hall of Fame quarterback, and we flustered him a little bit," Detroit wide receiver Nate Burleson said about Tom Brady, who threw his first interception of the preseason and led New England to only three points despite playing the entire first half. The Patriots first-team offence, which looked to be in midseason form in its first two exhibition games, was in preseason form Thursday at Ford Field. Tight end Zach Sudfeld and running backs Brandon Bolden and Shane Vereen lost fumbles and Brady was picked off in four of New Englands first five possessions. The other possession was a three-and-out that ended with Zoltan Meskos punt. "The defence set a standard today. We can be one of the better defences (in the league) if we keep working," said Louis Delmas, the oft-injured safety who returned after missing much of the preseason while recovering from a knee injury. He recovered Sudfelds fumble on the games first drive. Brady played four series in the first two preseason games combined, completing 18 of his 20 passes for 172 yards and two touchdowns in two victories. But in a half of work in Detroit, he was 16 of 24 for 185 yards and the second-quarter interception by Detroit cornerback Chris Houston. "We didnt do anything in the first half other than turn the ball over," Brady said. Detroit starter Matthew Stafford also played the entire first half and helped lead Detroits first team to a better showing than it had in its first two exhibition efforts. The starters played seven series in those games -- a win over the Jets and a loss in Cleveland -- and managed only a pair of field goals. They produced three more field goals from David Akers against the Patriots, but also added Staffords 9-yard touchdown toss to a diving Tony Scheffler in the end zone that gave the Lions a 10-0 lead 2 minutes into the second quarter. Akers first field goal, a 23-yarder, was set up by a 67-yard catch and run by Reggie Bush, who was a big factor in the passing game. Bush, the multi-purpose back brought in to provide a spark for Detroit this season, ran for only a single yard on six carries, but he had five catches for 103 yards. Stafford finished 12 of 25 for 166 yards, but had to play again without his top target, Calvin Johnson. The star wide receiver also missed last weeks game in Cleveland, largely as a precaution. He has been bothered by a bruised knee. Johnson, who caught three passes in Detroits preseason opener Aug. 9 against New York, is expected to be ready to go once the regular season gets starts in two weeks. "We were down a big playmaker in our offence tonight and our defence knew that, showed up and played great," Stafford said. "Its about the team, man." Kellen Moore, who backed up Stafford in Shaun Hills absence, led the Lions on a touchdown drive to open the second half, throwing a 22-yard scoring pass to tight end Joseph Fauria. That score, which gave the Lions a 23-3 lead, was sandwiched by Akers field goals of 49 and 47 yards. Hill sat out the game to rest as he did this week in practice. Moore threw another TD pass, a 15-yarder, to wideout Micheal Spurlock in the fourth quarter. Another of Detroits key free-agent signings, defensive end Jason Jones, had a big game for the Lions, sacking Brady twice and recovering a fumble. Fellow linemen Ndamukong Suh, Nick Fairley and first-round pick Ezekiel Ansah also made their presence felt, stuffing New Englands ground game and pressuring Brady throughout the first half. "Those guys make my job easy," Detroit linebacker Stephen Tulloch said. "They disrupt everything." Ryan Mallett directed the Patriots for the entire second half with New Englands coaches opting not to play third-stringer Tim Tebow. A contingent of fans at the game broke into a "We want Tebow!" chant. The former Heisman Trophy winner has passed poorly but run well in the preseason and is not considered a lock to make the team. Asked why he only played two quarterbacks, Patriots coach Bill Belichick responded with: "Because I only played two quarterbacks." Both teams need to get down to the NFL-mandated 75 players by Tuesday. The Patriots finish the exhibition schedule Aug. 29 against the New York Giants, while the Lions play at Buffalo that evening. The final cut to 53 comes two days later. NOTES: Detroit special teams ace Montell Owens fell to the turf without being touched during a second-quarter rushing attempt and had to be helped off the field after several minutes. He did not return. ... WR Kenbrell Thompkins led the Patriots in receiving with eight catches for 116 yards. ... Lions rookie punter Sam Martin had a 57-yard boot late in the first half that landed at the 5 before making an abrupt left turn and dribbling out of bounds inside the 1. ... A 9-yard pass from Mallett to RB James Develin accounted for New Englands lone TD. Stitched Jerseys For Sale .5 million. The 25-year-old Varlamov is thriving under first-year coach and Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy, posting a 26-9-5 record with a 2. Authentic Jerseys For Sale . Joining him in this years class were Switzerlands Patrick Huerlimann and Norways Eigil Ramsfjell. The announcement was made at the world mens curling championship at Capital Indoor Stadium in China. https://www.jerseysforsalechina.com/ . Chief prosecutor Gerrie Nel also accused Pistorius of tailoring his testimony to fit the evidence at the scene. Pistorius denied the accusations. 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Many in the Manitoba capital felt the Jets needed to achieve improvement this season at home and within their own division to ultimately be successful. The theory was - and still is - a shift upward in both categories this year would certainly aid in possibly propelling the club to the post-season for the first time since its move from Georgia. Thus far, the team is a game below .500 at home and 1-1 in their division. Now, the calendar hasnt quite turned to November, but the fear in Winnipeg amongst some of the fandom after the first eight games is the season could slip away before it really ever begins in playoff earnest. For head coach Paul Maurice, theres concern over the 3-5 start, but theres an 82-game schedule to play and panic is not part of a constructive process. Every year, its a new team, said Maurice. I know a lot of these guys have played together. But you have new people; new expectations coming in. We should find some joy in the work. You have to re-establish those bonds. Were trying to fight our way through being a quiet team. The second-year Jets bench boss has been asked repeatedly by reporters to judge his teams performance in small segments like the just complete homestand, but the always calm and astute Maurice would rather use 10-game blocks to more effectively get a read on his teams progress or struggles. Either way, Sundays win over Central Division foe Colorado showed more promise in an overall team game. Top line forwards like captain Andrew Ladd and Little both found the scoresheet and the club directed upwards of 80 pucks towards the Avalanche net, 34 of which were blocked. The victory over the Avs also ended a homestand where the emergence of some of the teams prized future started to noticeably become more impactful. For the most part, the play of NHL sophomores Jacob Trouba and Mark Scheifele has been solid and consistent. Although Trouba (0-0-0) has yet to record a point and Scheifele has only two points in eight games, both players have been effective for all the right reasons. The pair are either creating chances that havent been converted to points or controlling elements of the game with and without the puck. Moreover, rookie Adam Lowrys play at centre through the first three weeks of the season has also been considered progressiive.dddddddddddd This is especially soothing for an organization stringent on its draft and develop philosophy. At just 21 years old, the Calgary product is among the team leaders in hits and has found his way into anchoring the third line with a variety of wingers thus far. He scored his first NHL goal in a 3-1 win over Carolina (Oct. 21) and has averaged well over 11 minutes of ice time per game – a number thats most certainly going to increase as contests tick off the docket. Were young but those guys are part of our team drive, said Maurice. For the two of them anyway, the guys that have put a full year in the NHL when their names are going down, theyre going down in the same mindset as Little and Ladd and these other guys. Theyre all in the same group for me. Those three guys are key pieces. Theyre all in that same group for me. Naturally, there was some chatter about the second-year stumble or sophomore jinx with respect to both Scheifele and Trouba entering this season. But out of the gate, both have shown no indication that the league has caught up to them or they enjoyed any sort of beginners luck a year ago. Both of them have a real good understanding of the game, said Maurice. Were not in a teaching curve for two or three years. They get this stuff real quick. For me, Jacob Trouba is not just back to where he was last year. Hes starting to look even stronger on the ice. To close out October, the Jets venture on the road for four games beginning Tuesday on Long Island against the upstart Islanders (6-2). If this eastern sojourn can produce anything like a .500 or better record, it should serve Winnipeg well in moving ahead with the improvement the organization is striving toward. The trip continues with stops in New Jersey (Thursday), Madison Square Garden (Saturday) and concludes in Chicago (Sunday). NOTES: Injured forward Evander Kane made the trip with the team. A timetable for his return is still uncertain but Maurice indicated on Monday morning theyre shooting for a return to game action after the road trip. Hes still on what the team calls IR skates but as the week moves along, its expected hell start to participate in regular practice and physical contact drills. Bryan Little leads the team with five goals. He has one on the power play, another short-handed and a game-winner. Speaking of the teams power play, it currently ranks third-last in the league with only one tally on 28 chances. After a forgettable plus-minus year last season for Dustin Byfuglien (minus-20), the power forward leads the club on the positive side of the ledger this year at plus-4. In two previous attempts this season, the Jets have yet to win back-to-back games this season. That could end Tuesday against on the Island. ' ' '