The New England Patriots' hopes for a turnaround performance turned into an even bigger disaster in Germany.
Drake Maye suffered an ankle injury on the first drive of the game after eating a sack from Lions star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson. The third-year quarterback headed to the locker room shortly thereafter and never returned.
It was all downhill from there as the defense continued to implode in the same ways that it did in last week's loss to the Green Bay Packers. The Lions hung 494 yards of total offense on New England in the 35-10 blowout victory. It was complete dominance over a Patriots defensive unit that looks nothing like the unit that helped lead the team to the Super Bowl last season.
They looked defeated in this matchup, and the
Lions sensed blood in the waters. Here are the studs and duds from the Patriots' Week 10 loss on Sunday:
DUD: OL Will Campbell
Will Campbell drew a false start penalty that put the Patriots behind the sticks earlier on the first drive in the red zone. Shortly after that play, he gave up the big sack to Hutchinson that caused Maye's ankle injury. It was a rough day at the office for Campbell, who has had a good season up to this point,
DUD: WR A.J. Brown
The A.J. Brown trade has looked worse for the Patriots after each passing week. Granted, Maye was out for most of the game, but Brown wasn't able to do much to help the situation. He dropped another pass and got flagged for a false start penalty. The former three-time All-Pro was targeted six times for only two receptions for 27 yards.
His best play of the game came on a 21-yard catch and run on a play that ended with him injuring his hamstring. Brown has struggled to stay healthy this season, and maybe there's a pot of gold still sitting at the end of the rainbow. But so far, it hasn't looked good for the three-time All-Pro receiver.
DUD: Coach Mike Vrabel
For a second straight week, the Patriots were an absolute disaster on defense. The offense completely collapsing is somewhat forgiveable considering they lost their starting quarterback on the first drive of the game. But most of the defense has been present and accounted for on the field, and that unit has looked like one of the worst in football against good offenses in back-to-back weeks.
STUD: P Mitch Wishnowsky
One of the few positive plays for the Patriots came off the foot of punter Mitch Wishnowsky, who booted a 57-yarder to the three-yard line. Wishnowsky has consistently played well for the Patriots, and he has more than earned his starting role on the team. It's too bad the defense couldn't take advantage of the flipped field.
DUD: OC Josh McDaniels
Struggling without Maye on the field is understandable, but the offense looked completely dead in the water without its star quarterback leading the ship. That shouldn't happen under an offensive coordinator as accomplished as Josh McDaniels. Tommy DeVito came into the game and mustered only 12 completed passes for 81 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Oddly enough, the Patriots continued to run the ball late in the third quarter despite being down by multiple scores. There was never any sense of urgency with the playcalling, even with the team losing big. McDaniels and the entire offense was lost without Maye.
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Studs and duds from Patriots' ugly Week 10 loss to Lions
