Seven months after getting beaten by the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl, the New England Patriots had a chance at some payback. While they did find themselves in a more competitive position in their season opener on Wednesday, the end result was equally disappointing: a 13-10 defeat at the hand of the world champions.
Here is a Patriots-centric view at some of the key moments of the game.
Moment No. 1: Game-changing sack
At first glance, Dre’Mont Jones’ 5-yard sack of
Sam Darnold to end Seattle’s first drive was nothing remarkable. The offseason addition showcased some good hustle getting the quarterback down, but the play looked like your standard clean-up takedown. However, in the process of being brought to the ground, Darnold hurt his hip and later left for the medical tent and locker room. He never emerged, leaving the Seahawks offense in the hands of backup Drew Lock.
Moment No. 2: Rookie touchdown
The first half was mostly a defensive battle, but the Patriots were able to break the stalemate midway through the second quarter. Moving the chains three times on third down, Drake Maye and company marched 77 yards in 10 plays to score the game’s first touchdown. That TD came courtesy of the team’s third-round draft pick earlier this year, tight end Eli Raridon: the rookie got wide open behind Seattle’s defense to haul in a 2-yard catch for the score.
As a consequence, Raridon became the first Patriots rookie to catch a touchdown in his NFL debut in 13 years. The last one was wide receiver Aaron Dobson back in 2013.
Moment No. 3: Complementary bad football
One of the Patriots’ biggest issues in their Super Bowl loss to the Seahawks in February was losing the turnover battle, and Wednesday saw more of the same. The first negative play in that regard happened in the early fourth quarter, when Drake Maye made a bad decision to target Romeo Doubs in double coverage. The pass was broken up with the ball popping into the air and eventually getting intercepted.
The Patriots defense followed suit after the Maye pick. While the unit did force Seattle into a 4th-and-1 situation on the very next drive, it did not do a good job defending it. Selling out to stop the run, New England allowed Jaxon Smith-Njigba to get wide open. A missed tackle later and the NFL Offensive Player of the Year found himself in open space on his way to a. 45-yard game-tying touchdown.
Moment No. 4: Pick No. 2
The Patriots’ string of bad football continued on the next drive, when Drake Maye threw a second straight interception. That pick in particular was a tough one because it came right after what should have been an easy first down to Romeo Doubs. However, the big-ticket free agency signing dropped an easy catch to set up that eventually doomed 3rd-and-14 play — one that allowed Seattle to take possession in New England territory and score a field goal.
Moment No. 5: Game-ender
Down 13-10, the Patriots were still in a position to win the game. It did take two fourth-down conversions, but with under 30 seconds to go they found themselves at the Seattle 16-yard line. A game-tying field goal was a gimme from that distance and the winning touchdown still a possibility. Instead, however, Drake Maye threw his third pick in as many possessions to end the game.
