Yeah, that was rough.
The New England Patriots got their proverbial butts handed to them on Sunday afternoon, losing to the Green Bay Packers in a game that very much was a 60-minute struggle for the home team on both sides of the ball. The offense looked like its early-season version by repeatedly shooting itself in the foot and letting opportunities to get back into the game slip through its grasp, while the defense failed to offer much resistance against one of the most explosive offenses in football.
The end result was a 45-27 shellacking that raises significant concerns for the team — in large part because its two best players, quarterback Drake Maye and cornerback Christian Gonzalez, both had forgettable days. The Patriots in their current state are simply not good enough to overcome off days from one let alone both of them.
Naturally, they will have to lead the way when it comes to bouncing back from this one. However, they are not the only ones who need to take a step forward.
Let’s take a look at the film and hand out some grades.
Patriots film review from NFL Week 9
Quarterback: Drake Maye is as talented a thrower of the football as there is in the NFL, and this was on display multiple times against the Packers. Not all of them were completed — we will get to that — but Maye looked like an MVP-caliber quarterback on multiple occasions. Unfortunately for him, he also looked like the error-prone player from earlier in the season as well, and it cost the Patriots. His three interceptions were reminiscent of those previous struggles: his first and third picks were the result of bad decisions and improper eye discipline, while his second was the result of an inaccurate throw that was tipped for another turnover. For as good as Maye was at times, those plays overshadow everything else and put New England on the road to defeat. | Grade: D+
Running back: Rhamondre Stevenson once again did what he could and continues to be the Patriots’ most reliable player on the offensive side of the ball. Against Green Bay, he had three explosive plays, including a 30-yard touchdown catch on a well-executed wheel route. Unfortunately, as with Drake Maye, his 78-yard performance and 5.3-yard rushing average are partially overshadowed by a turnover as well as some insufficient pass protection. On the whole, however, he had a solid day. Corey Kiner did too, but most of his production came in garbage time. Lan Larison was quiet. | Grade: B-
Wide receiver: Mike Vrabel was complementary of Kyle Williams in training camp, but his impact continues to be limited even when given a prominent role. On Sunday, he continued to be mostly used as a sacrificial X-receiver that teams are not fooled by, and his plays included a drop on what would have been a significant gain, an interception, and two targets with Tommy DeVito at quarterback that resulted in him getting banged up. His stock is trending down, something that cannot be said for DeMario Douglas: the fourth-year man is New England’s most consistent pass catcher and his five-catch, 102-yard performance proves that once again. He continues to perform well in space and even though he would have contributed to a fourth interception by stopping too early on one of his routes — that pick was dropped — he had a good day. Mack Hollins and Efton Chism also had some positive moments, even though Hollins and Maye were not on the same page on the first interception. | Grade: C
Tight end: Hunter Henry was on a snap count after practicing only once leading up to the game, and he was used primarily in the passing game. His impact was not profound, but he did make some positive plays — something that also is true for rookie Eli Raridon. The youngster has shown a good rapport with Drake Maye, even though he was the target on the third interception (a play that still falls on the QB for being baited into a throw). Tanner Arkin, on the other hand, had some noticeable struggles including when he picked up the wrong player on a 6-yard loss. The undrafted rookie was waived on Monday. | Grade: C
Offensive line: Will Campbell is the Patriots’ best offensive lineman, and it isn’t particularly close. He was very good against the Packers, even though he and Ben Brown failed to properly pick up a stunt resulting in a first-quarter sack on a 3rd-and-7. Still, he was the least of New England’s problems. The rest of the line was uneven, with Jared Wilson and the replacement guards — Walter Rouse and Matt Pryor — all at the scene for sacks. Obviously, some hiccups are expected from Rouse and Pryor; the former has had his issues whenever on the field this year, while the latter is a solid player but nonetheless a replacement-level option. Morgan Moses was solid, as was Caleb Lomu after he entered the game in place of an injured Campbell. | Grade: C-
Defensive line: The Patriots defense had a bad game, but there were some positive moments up front. Milton Williams was at the point of attack on most of them, and had a solid game that included three quarterback pressures. Cory Durden and Christian Barmore stuffed three runs each, with the latter also picking up a sack. However, Durden opened the hole on Jordan Love’s 13-yard touchdown scramble in the first quarter, while Barmore was washed out of his gap quite easily on Green Bay’s 2-yard score in the second quarter. The edge players — Dre’Mont Jones, Elijah Ponder, Gabe Jacas — continued to showcase their high motors, but they also were undisciplined at times with Jones and Jacas both penalized for pre-snap infractions on third downs. For a team with a limited margin of error, unforced mistakes like these are back-breakers. | Grade: C+
Linebacker: Much like the defensive line, the Patriots’ off-ball linebackers had some good plays, including one pressure and run stuff each from Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss. On the whole, however, their impact was marginal and they failed to help with the team’s biggest issues while aligning in stacked boxes on early downs. Elliss also took a bad angle from the second level on Love’s touchdown run in the early first quarter, while both he and Spillane fell victim to play-action fakes. | Grade: C
Cornerback: Carlton Davis gave up a 43-yard pass before leaving with an injury, Karton Prunty surrendered a 10-yard touchdown, and Marcus Jones was responsible for a 28-yarder; he also seemed to be at fault for the miscommunication on Matthew Golden’s 5-yard touchdown. Their issues, however, paled in comparison to Christian Gonzalez’s. Typically New England’s best and most reliable defender, he had an uncharacteristically bad performance and saw nine passes for 188 yards and a touchdown completed into his coverage area — including five catches for 106 yards in traditional man coverage. So, what went wrong? A combination of things. The Packers performing at a very high level; some of the defensive calls and structures; insufficient safety positioning; bad luck (i.e. tripping on a 43-yard man-to-man catch); and possibly most worryingly an apparent lack of reactionary and closing speed. The Patriots are asking a lot of Gonzalez and trust him with diverse coverage assignments, but one has to wonder whether or not this slows him down and puts him out of his comfort zone. That doesn’t excuse what looked like a lack of urgency at times, including on a missed tackle on a 34-yard run, but his performance a) started snowballing at some point, and b) requires some context the raw numbers simply cannot provide. | Grade: F
Safety: A defense giving up seven explosive passes is reflective of a breakdown that goes beyond just one position group; the entire secondary struggled top to bottom — including the safeties. Kevin Byard was slow to move into his zone on Matthew Golden’s 49-yard catch in the first quarter, and Craig Woodson did not provide the necessary inside help when Christian Watson got inside leverage against Christian Gonzalez to beat New England’s Cover 4 for a 39-yard touchdown. Woodson’s run defense was solid, but pointing that out feels like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. The ship went down nonetheless. | Grade: D–
Special teams: Kick coverage continues to be a problem for the Patriots, including on a 48-yard Bo Melton runback in the second quarter and a 13-yard Coleman Owen punt return in the third. That said, there also was a lot to like, including Andy Borregales making all three of his extra points and Mitch Wishnowsky teaming up with Erick Hunter to pin the Packers at the 2-yard line on a 50-yard punt. | Grade: C
How would you grade the Patriots’ performance against the Packers? Do you agree with our assessment? Please head down to the comment section to discuss with the rest of the community.
