Patriots News 12-10, Patriots Report Card Against Pittsburgh
(PHOTO: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 11 minutes
Posted Under: Patriots Report Card
(PHOTO: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 11 minutes
New England Patriots > Patriots Blog
(PHOTO: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports) Good morning, and Happy Gameday. Here are our Sunday 12-10 Patriots news and notes. The Patriots have an extended time off after playing the Steelers on Thursday Night Football. The extra few days of rest and preparation will be needed for next Sunday’s meeting with Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs at Gillette Stadium.
Closing out our notes from the Pittsburgh game, even in a bad year, Bill Belichick continues his domination over Mike Tomlin and Pittsburgh. Belichick is now 10-3 against Tomlin. I had the opportunity to be a guest on good buddy Ralph Williams’ show in Pittsburgh, and contrary to what we thought, he and his co-host were full of dread for this matchup.
Frequently referring to Tomlin as “Mediocre Mike,” they sensed that the Patriots would score in this one, and it turned out that they were spot on with their prediction of a Patriots victory.
After the Patriots took a 21-3 lead in the first half, and hung on for the win, it improved the Patriots record under Bill Belichick to 147-2 when they have a lead of 18+ points in a game.
I’ll add more thoughts in my positional Patriots Report Card below.
Bill Belichick: Belichick was a guest on ESPN’s College Game Day prior to the Army-Navy game at Gillette Stadium. In a great segment with the crew, Belichick regaled the hosts with details about the 1967 game, highlighting Lee Corso’s aggressiveness that resulted in a Navy win. Belichick then donned the 1963 Navy helmet in a must-see moment.
In moments like these, Belichick is without peer in detailing the history of the game. It was a great moment and one we won’t forget anytime soon. Belichick would make a superb host for the Game Day crew once Lee Corso retires.
On Friday, Belichick spoke about how special the game was to him, Joe Cardona, and the countless service members and veterans around the world.
“There’s really nothing like Army-Navy,” Belichick said. “I’ve been in a lot of big games, I’ve seen a lot of big games, but this is special.”
But with apologies to Bill and Bob Socci, “GO ARMY, BEAT NAVY!
Author as a Special Forces trainer with a Central American anti-tank unit back in the day.
Jabrill Peppers: Peppers, the former 1st-round pick who is playing like one for the Patriots, has taken on a much bigger leadership role for the team in 2023. On Thursday, after the game, he pretty much gave a game ball to Bill Belichick and made it clear that he doesn’t appreciate the barbs the coach has been taking.
“We needed it. I just feel good we could get it done for Bill and the rest of the coaches,” Peppers said.
“I don’t really like all the flak he’s been getting because it’s on us as players to go out and execute. I personally feel like the game plan has been phenomenal week in and week out, and when we had opportunities to make plays, we didn’t make them. But we made enough tonight.”
Sean McDermott: What was McDermott thinking? Obviously, the message was lost in translation, but what a horrible thing to reference.
McDermott has come under a lot of fire for a report in “Go Long” that was released on Thursday where he referenced during a team meeting back in 2019 the 9/11 hijackers being a group who used great communication to get on the same page before orchestrating the attacks to perfection. Talk about tone-deaf. And doing this in New York State, where the majority of the people died that day.
He subsequently apologized and said that the three-part report from “Go Long” was hurtful and called into question his character. Perhaps, but he used extremely poor judgment in trying to use the hijackers in a positive light. One of the criticisms of McDermott in this piece is that he is not a great leader and freezes during tight games. He also doesn’t excel at using motivational speeches like the one above.
The Bills right now are 6-6 and playing the Chiefs later this afternoon. A loss could be disastrous to the Bills’ playoff hopes. While McDermott’s seat won’t be hot about the 2019 fiasco, it could get very warm if the Bills don’t have a long playoff run.
Ty Montgomery: The Patriots released the RB/WR/KR on Friday to make room for LB Christian Elliss, who was picked up on waivers from Philadelphia.
While someone had to go to make room for Elliss, Montgomery made the coaches’ job easier when he missed a block during the game on Thursday, which allowed Pittsburgh to block a punt, and the ensuing short-field TD cut the Patriots’ lead to just three points.
Montgomery appeared in all 13 games this year, but mainly on STs. He’s been only used sporadically on offense.
Patriots 4th & 2 Podcast: If you haven’t listened to our PatsFans.com podcast, Patriots 4th & 2”, in a bit, please check it out. Patriots 4th & 2 has expanded.
Derek Havens and I did a recap of the Chargers game and looked at the Steelers game on a short week in Pittsburgh. Get well soon. Wishes to Derek, as he’s been really under the weather lately.
Russ Francis/Chuck Fairbanks: The former Patriot tight end and head coach should be in the Patriots team Hall of Fame, and the fact that Francis isn’t in is an absolute travesty. Francis and the Raiders’ Dave Casper changed the game with how teams used the tight end position…this will be on our Sunday posts until it happens. Casper is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Francis’ numbers stand up well against Casper’s, yet he isn’t in the team’s.
The Patriots found some offense in the first half, scoring 21 points on three Bailey Zappe touchdown passes en route to a win over the Steelers in Pittsburgh. The playing calling was aggressive and the execution was much better.
The second half, however, was back to reality for this Patriots team. Zappe could only muster 44 yards passing, and the offense was blanked the rest of the way. The defense was once again terrific, holding the Steelers to under 20 points and 264 yards of total offense.
The veterans, Jonathan Jones, Ezekiel Elliott, and JuJu Smith-Schuster, all stepped up big time to aid the team on a short week to victory.
Ezekiel Elliott was easily the star of the game as he not only turned back the clock to vintage Zeke, but saved the win by taking down Mykal Walker after he intercepted a Bailey Zappe pass and would have scored if not for Elliott. The Patriots defense then held the Steelers on the ensuing drive.
But for the first 30 minutes on Thursday, the New England offense looked like a completely different unit.
So, here are our grades this week for the Patriots-Steelers game.
Bailey Zappe was terrific in the first half, throwing for three TDs and 196 yards. He hit Elliott on an 11-yard TD on the Patriots’ opening drive to open the scoring and put the team ahead for the first time in a while.
He then threw a really nice TD pass to Hunter Henry on a post route where Henry had beaten coverage, and Zappe put the ball up high where only Henry could catch it. He later hit Henry for another 24-yard TD down the left sideline.
There were some bad throws and plays mixed in as well. And the second half was the polar opposite of the first. Zappe had a pick, where Elandon Roberts closed on Smith-Schuster and deflected the ball straight up. The throw wasn’t bad but he waited a tick too long and allowed Roberts to crash down on Smith-Schuster. He had another would-be pick go right through a Steeler’s hands on the sideline.
But for an offense that has struggled to score points all season, that first half tips the scales over the remainder of the game.
Ezekiel Elliott took over the injured Rhamondre Stevenson was the Patriots’ workhorse on a short week and had his best game in a Patriot uniform. His rushing totals, 22 carries for 68 yards, while not great, speak more about the toughness of the Pittsburgh defense than the smaller average he had running the ball. He ran tough and hard and gave the team exactly what it needed.
His work in the passing game was exemplary. Elliott was targeted eight times and made 7 catches for 72 yards and a touchdown. He saved the game with a tackle on the aforementioned Zappe pick. Elliott turned back the clock to give the team a look at vintage Zeke when they really needed it.
The Patriots were missing DeVante Parker, Demario Douglas, and Kayshon Boutte, all out with injuries this week. And JuJu Smith-Schuster, playing against his former team on the road, easily had his best game in a Patriot uniform.
Smith-Schuster had four catches for 90 yards, including a 37-yard deep pass that was the longest completion of air yards by the Patriots this season. The pass wasn’t particularly well thrown, and Smith-Schuster went up and wrestled the ball away from the Steelers’ Damonte Kazee. That occurred on the Patriots opening drive which opened the door for the first opening drive TD of the season.
Tyquan Thornton had a nice 11-yard catch along the sideline but checked in with just three catches for 17 yards.
Hunter Henry had three catches for 40 yards with two of them being outstanding catches. His first, a post route, where he had great separation, showed him going up high and fielding the ball cleanly and then getting both feet inbounds.
His second was a terrific catch. Zappe had him down the left sideline, and it was an even better grab, going up high to make a super catch before going to the ground and holding on for his second score of the night. He did get flagged twice (for OPI and a false start), but what a great way to cap off his birthday.
The offensive line had a tough night opening holes for the running game. The team ran for only 81 yards on 25 carries, but it was a very tough matchup with the Steelers’ defense, especially the front seven. The battle was a difficult one as rushing yards were tough to come by.
Michael Onwenu, coming off a very rough outing against Khalil Mack, kept T.J. Watt at bay all night long in a terrific turnaround just four days later. The line allowed just two sacks, both of which occurred on nicely schemed stunts by Pittsburgh. Overall, this was a very good performance.
The defensive line had another outstanding day defending the run, holding Pittsburgh to just 82 yards on 28 carries, a 2.9-yard average. They stopped Najee Harris (12-29), Jaylen Warren (7-11), and Mitch Trubiski (8-30) from gaining any traction on the ground. Pittsburgh’s longest run of the night (15 yards) was on the first snap of the game, where Trubiski scrambled for a gain of 15.
All of the DLs were active and were impressive on the night. Davon Godchaux, Lawrence Guy, Keion White, and Deatrich Wise were all terrific. And Wise made a great hustle play by sniffing out a reverse and chasing it down. For a man of his size to chase down the play like that has to be one of the defensive plays of the game.
The linebackers were equally impressive as well, with Jahlani Tavai leading the way with 15 tackles and Ja’Whaun Bentley with seven, as well as a QB hit. Anfernee Jennings continued with his stellar edge-setting play with three TFLs. Josh Uche played only 25 defensive snaps ( 36 percent) and didn’t register any stats.
Mac Wilson had a sack early and a huge stop on 4th and 2 that even got a low-five from Belichick. He also broke up and nearly intercepted an ill-avised option pass from Connor Heyward. He finished with a QB and a TFL as well.
The secondary, led by Jonathan Jones, had a very impressive game. On a curious play call on a 4th and 2 from midfield late in the game, the Steelers went for it all on a deep sideline throw to Diontae Johnson; Jones had blanket coverage on a pass that had no chance of being completed. He was part of a group that put George Pickens, for this night, on to a milk carton. He had just five catches for 19 yards with a long of just seven.
Jabrill Peppers picked off Trubiski and returned it 32 yards to the Pittsburgh 11, setting up the first TD pass to Hunter Henry. Kyle Dugger shared a key sack on 3rd down, with Christian Barmore stopping the Steelers on their first possession of the 2nd half. He had two QB hits, one of which set the table for Peppers’ INT.
Myles Bryant had a strong game as well, with five tackles, a pass defensed, and sharing on a sack blitzing off the edge. J.C. Jackson knocked the grade down a bit. He got beat on the Pittsburgh 25-yard TD pass from Trubiski to Diontae Johnson and two DPIs.
The STs’ are the only group with a failing grade this week and continue to be a major disappointment in the season. Ty Montgomery whiffed on a block, which resulted in Myles Killebrew blocking a Bryce Barringer punt.
Barringer had a couple of punts bound into the end zone. Brendan Schooler had an ill-advised personal foul penalty. The unit caught a huge break on a false start call on Pittsburgh when it appeared that the Patriots jumped offside on a 4th down punt, which would have given them a 1st down late in the game.
In a short week, the coaches put together a nice game plan that was executed very well…for a change. The defense was fantastic and once again held an opponent to under 300 yards of offense and under 20 points.
Bill and Steve Belichick, with Jerod Mayo put together an excellent defensive game plan to limit the admittedly struggling Pittsburgh offense. That shouldn’t be lost in the aftermath of the game.
The offense was attacking and impressive during the first half. But for the last 30 minutes, they fell back into predictable patterns which were all too painfully familiar. Instead of attacking, they were nibbling, loathe to make a mistake. STs continue to be a nightmare. Those two factors knocked down the score a full grade.
That’s it for the Steelers week. The Patriots have a mini-bye to prepare for the Chiefs next Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at Gillette Stadium.
Thursday Night Football:
Pittsburgh over New England 0-1
Atlanta over Tampa Bay
Detroit over Chicago
Cincinnati over Indianapolis
Cleveland over Jacksonville
New Orleans over Carolina
Houston over NYJ
Baltimore over LA Rams
Minnesota over Las Vegas
San Francisco over Seattle
Kansas City over Buffalo
LA Chargers over Denver
Philadelphia over Dallas
Miami over Tennessee
Green Bay over NYG
Bye Week: Arizona, Washington
Last Week 8—5
2023 Season 123—70
2022 Season: 178—92—2
2021 Season: 183—88—1
2020 Season: 169—86—1
2019 Season: 162—93—1
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“Well, not to get overly dramatic, but when you go to one of the military academies, you voluntarily agree and sign up to defend our country at all costs, including your life.
“That’s a voluntary decision and a very important one. So, ultimately, these are the men and women who are going to lead our country in the coming years and decades. So, the March On for the Corps of Cadets and the Midshipmen is a pretty impressive thing. You look down and you see 4,000 men and women who are training to be our country’s leaders and our country’s defenders in the future. It’s a pretty impressive moment to recognize all those kids as they’re going through the process, and who they’re going to be, and what’s going to come out of there. And the training that they’re going through, it makes you very proud to see that.
“The March On starts about three hours before the game. So, I would recommend that for sure. Again, when you voluntarily take the oath to go to the Naval Academy or go to West Point, you’re not thinking about your future as an NFL player or whatever. You’re thinking about your career as a military officer and fighting and defending our country.
“Football is part of it, but there’s a bigger part of it for them. Football is a game, but they’ll lay it all on the line. As they should and as they will in future years of combat and engagement. So, I think that’s what you’re seeing, and the intensity of the game and how much it means to both academies. It’s a lot. It’s really a lot. It’s a game that will be followed around the world.
“Every Army and Navy officer that’s stationed wherever they’re stationed will be watching or listening to the game or following the game. There’ll probably be some wagers and so forth on it in all points around the world. It’s very intently viewed, watched, and recognized. Every American probably has some connection to the Army or Navy. Through some family member or friend or whatever that served in one of those two branches, or they’re associated with the Marine Corps and so forth.
“So, sometimes you have a regional game that you don’t necessarily pick a side in. But, I’ve learned through the years that everybody has a stake in Army or Navy one way or the other. So, it’s a national game that will be followed worldwide. And there’ll be a lot riding on it.”
Bill Belichick on why it is important and what to watch for in the Army-Navy game played at Gillette Stadium yesterday.
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“Talent sets the floor; Character sets the ceiling.” Bill Belichick
Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at [email protected]
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