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(PHOTO: Dec 17, 2023; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick shakes hands with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) after a game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports) The Patriots got flexed out of a Monday night game, and today, Patrick Mahomes flexed them out of the game. Time and again, Mahomes made big plays in key situations to lift the Chiefs to a 27-17 win over the Patriots. It was a reminder of who is still the best QB in the game today.
The Patriots’ defense were gamers today; they fought hard and truthfully should have allowed only 20 points. But a terrible interception set KC up at the seven-yard line for the score that essentially put the game away.
And once again, the offense looked very efficient, even very good at times in the first half, only to fall flat in the final 30 minutes. The Patriots’ special teams were, once again, not very special, which didn’t help matters.
So, here are our grades this week for the Patriots-Chiefs game.
For Bailey Zappe, it was once again a tale of two halves. In the first 30 minutes, Zappe was a stud, completing 17 of 19 passes for 141 yards and a TD. In the second half, he face-planted, going 6 of 12 for just 39 yards with an interception.
That interception was a back-breaker. With the Chiefs up 17-10 after just kicking a FG at the start of the second half, on the first play from scrimmage, Zappe rolled to his right and tried to squeeze the ball to Pharaoh Brown between multiple defenders. It was a poor decision, especially on first down, and the pass was picked off by Willie Gay.
This set the Chiefs and Mahomes up at the seven-yard line. KC wasted no time in scoring, making it 24-10; game over; thanks for coming, and place your tables in the upright position.
Overall, he was sacked four times, and for the majority of them, he held the ball too long, a recurring issue. He made some excellent throws, however. His 16-yard TD pass to Hunter Henry was a gorgeous throw over the defenders. He and Henry connected again later in the half for another equally nice pass and catch for a TD that was wiped out by a penalty. Also a recurring issue this year.
Ezekiel Elliott had nowhere to run (cue up Martha and the Vandellas). After a good game against the Steelers, Elliott had just 25 yards on 11 carries. Chiefs’ DC Steve Spagnuolo made stopping the run a priority, and they did a great job of it.
Elliott chipped in with five catches for just 21 yards and had issues with pass protection picking up blitzers. Kevin Harris saw his first action of the year and had a terrific 18-yard TD run in the fourth quarter.
The wide receivers didn’t have big games but did chip in with some plays. DeVante Parker was targeted five times and caught each for 44 yards. Demario Douglas returned from concussion protocol and had three catches for 33 yards. He was also flagged for a facemask penalty that helped kill a promising drive.
After his best game in a Patriot uniform, JuJu Smith-Schuster missed the game because of injury. (sigh) Tyquan Thornton had one catch for five yards. Jalen Reagor was targeted once but had no catches.
Hunter Henry was targeted nine times and hauled in seven catches for 66 yards and a TD. He had another wiped out by a holding penalty. The coaches have been calling (finally) his number lately, and he’s responded with some good production. In the off-season, when the team begins looking to re-sign, he should be given plenty of consideration.
Mike Gesicki was targeted twice and had a catch for seven yards. Pharaoh Brown was targeted twice and had a catch for four yards. Henry was the reason for the good grade here. Unfortunately, he took a big hit and injured his knee and didn’t return.
The offensive line had a rough day; Trent Brown was inactive due to injury. Connor McDermott started in his place and wasn’t performing well before he went down with a concussion. He was flagged for holding and took Henry’s second TD off the board.
Then Cole Strange suffered a knee injury and was carted off. The left side of the OL consisted of backups. The unit once again had issues communicating when the Chiefs were sending blitzers, which has been an ongoing issue.
While they were suffering breakdowns in protection, some of the four sacks could be attributed to Zappe holding the ball too long.
The defensive line had another terrific day; the Chiefs could only muster 43 yards rushing on 20 carries, a 2.2-yard per carry average. Both of those numbers speak about how well the front seven has defended the run.
Deatrich Wise (sack), Lawrence Guy, and Davon Godchaux were all excellent at stopping the running game at the point of attack, but the highest marks has to go to Christian Barmore. Barmore has been fantastic in the second half of the season. He logged six tackles, a sack, two TFLs, and two QB hits. Jeremiah Pharms chipped with three tackles.
The linebackers were mostly terrific once again. Ja’Whaun Bentley and Jahlani Tavai combined for six tackles. Tavai had an INT and a pass defensed. Anfernee Jennings had another solid day with a TFL. He also showed great power in driving a KC OLman into Mahomes’ feet on one pressure. Mack Wilson added a sack. Marte Mapu got some reps at ILB, and got an interception on a nice play, he added a pass defensed. Josh Uche chipped in with a TFL and a QB hit.
While they helped limit Travis Kelce to just five catches for 28 yards, they had issues in the screen game. Clyde Edwards-Helaire had one that went for 48 yards. And that dropped the grade. Helaire had a great TD catch in the end zone, with Tavai in coverage. But he couldn’t have played that much better. It was just a great catch. But overall, the game plan was to limit Kelce and stop the run, and they did that very well.
J.C. Jackson was active but ended up not playing due to a “mental health issue” just prior to the game. Shaun Wade was inactive and so Alex Austin learned right before kickoff he was to start. Against Mahomes, no less. He had a pair of penalties that hurt, extending drives, including one that wiped out an intentional grounding call on Mahomes.
The secondary’s game plan to take away Kelce worked to a tee. But Rashee Rice had an excellent day, catching nine passes for 91 yards and a score. They gave up some big plays, Rice had a 24-yard catch, while Justin Watson had one for 31 and Noah Gray had one for 32. But several of those were the result of Mahomes just extending plays and making some excellent throws.
But they mixed in some good plays as well. Dugger and Myles Bryant broke up passes in the end zone. Jabrill Peppers led the team with seven tackles.
The ST units continue to struggle. Brendan Schooler had another penalty this week on the opening kickoff, and it wiped out a 46-yard return by Jalen Reagor. Was it a bad call? Possibly, it didn’t look like one, but it is what it is. And missed a tackle on a KC kickoff.
Bryce Barringer only put one punt inside the twenty today out of six punts. The coverage units gave up punt returns of 18 and 15 yards, respectively.
Chad Ryland missed a 41-yard FG attempt (made another from 25) and is now 13-19 on the season. While confidence in him is low right now, Pat Lane (@plane_pats) mentioned on Twitter/X on Monday that Adam Vinatieri, in his rookie season, missed eight FGs and two EPs. So, perhaps a bit more patience may be warranted.
Defensively, the game plan was executed pretty well, other than the one TD “drive” that went seven yards, the defense held Mahomes and Co. to 20 points before the final drive where Mahomes took a knee. Although short-handed in the secondary, the Patriots were aggressive and stayed that way for much of the game.
Offensively, after being aggressive and fairly productive in the first half, the play-calling went uber-conservative in the final two quarters. Punting on 4th and 3, down 17 points in the fourth quarter at the 43-yard line? Makes one wonder if the tank is in full swing.
Well, after falling to 3-11 for the first time since 2000, the Patriots are on to the Broncos in Denver on a short week. They’ve traditionally played some of their poorer games in Denver. We’ll see what happens on Christmas Eve.
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Follow me on Twitter @SteveB7SFG or email me at [email protected].
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