Heroic comeback

Tom Brady threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Kenbrell Thompkins with five seconds to play and the Patriots handed the visiting Saints their first loss of the season on Sunday, 30-27.

Brady, who saw his streak of throwing a TD pass in 52 consecutive games end at Cincinnati last week, finished 25-for-43 for 269 yards and Stevan Ridley rushed for two short touchdowns. Brady capped the unlikely game-winning drive encompassing 70 yards on eight plays in just over a minute without the use of a timeout.

New Orleans’ Drew Brees threw a pair of touchdown passes, including a go-ahead score to Kenny Stills with 3:35 to play. Brees finished 17-for-36 for 236 yards and a 3-yard scoring pass to Travaris Cadet.

The highly-anticipated matchup of star tight ends never materialized as New England’s Rob Gronkowski sat out his sixth straight game with a forearm injury and Jimmy Graham was held without a catch and injured his foot in the fourth quarter. Ridley carried the ball 20 times for 96 yards for the Patriots (5-1), who lost wide receiver Danny Amendola to a head injury in the fourth quarter.

A pair of field goals by Steven Gostkowski gave New England a 23-17 lead midway through the fourth quarter. But New Orleans (5-1) took the lead on Brees’ pass to Stills, who was covered by a pair of Patriot defenders, and Garrett Hartley added a 39-yard field goal a minute later.

GAME NOTEBOOK: New Orleans trailed 17-7 at the half, the first time the Saints trailed at intermission this season. …Graham entered the game averaging 118.6 yards a game receiving. … The Patriots lost cornerback Aqib Talib to a hip injury in the third quarter.