The Ugly, Pretty Ugly, and Extremely Ugly … and some Good
You don’t win in the NFL often when you turn the ball over 5 times on Offense and only have one turnover on Defense. Yet the Patriots were still tied late in the 4th Quarter and moving the ball again. This despite having two turnovers in the Pittsburgh Red Zone at the 1- and 2-yard lines. That final turnover proved costly as the Steelers, with 5:25 left in the 4th Quarter, drove 62 yards for the game-winning TD. Where is the accountability?
UGLY
Drake Maye made some very poor decisions in this game. He panicked in the pocket and decided to tuck it and try to run. That’s where he fumbled, even though he had an open receiver.
The Patriots had 7 penalties for 54 yards
Jabrill Peppers got his revenge by forcing Antonio Gibson’s fumble.
Patriots ran for 119 yards, but 47 of those yards were from Maye.
Bryce Barringer had one punt for 59 yards. However, it was only a net 39-yard punt because he punted it into the end zone.
The first of Rhamondre Stephenson’s fumbles came after a penalty against Pittsburgh, and the Patriots had 1st down at their own 36.
Too many Penalties (7 – 54 yards). I didn’t like the call on Carlton Davis on what was an uncatchable ball. However, on Maye’s scramble, TJ Watt was held and no call.
Pretty Ugly
The Patriots’ Defense gave up 2 Red-Zone Passing TDs.
I didn’t like the Mike Vrabel decision to go for it on 4th down and 1 at the NE 15-yard line with 5:54 left in the 2nd The score at the time was 14-0 Steelers. My wife screamed, “f*** me running”, when she saw the Stevenson attempt to run. It was a 1st down, but it was pretty damn funny, and we all had a good laugh at her exclamation.
Extremely Ugly
Rhamondre Stevenson had two fumbles. His fumbling is a problem, and he needs to be benched or released. Yes, released. I don’t think he is capable of correcting this problem.
Alex Austin’s two penalties sustained the Steelers’ drives after what would have been stops. 1st Quarter, his Goal Line Pass Interference on 3rd down allowed Pittsburgh 1st His 2nd Quarter Defensive Holding (a questionable call) took away a sack of Rodgers on 3rd down at the 15-yard line and allowed the drive to continue for a 90-yard TD drive. Austin was benched in favor of Charles Woods.
Demario Douglas needs to be inactive until he can get his act together. He had just 2 catches on 5 targets for 7 yards. It’s time to see Efton Chism. The final play on offense was the straw that broke the camel’s back. He should have dived forward and split the defenders. Instead, Douglas dropped back trying to elude the defenders and was tripped up short of the 1st down marker.
Maye was sacked 5 times.
The Patriots, leading the league in sacks, didn’t get credited with any sacks, even though they did have one taken away with a holding penalty.
The Patriots had two big turnovers in the Red Zone, one the 2nd Stephenson fumble at the one-yard line, and the second was the Interception at the 2-yard line with 0:12 left in the half. The ball was tipped at the line of scrimmage by Heyward and wobbled into Echols’ waiting arms. Maye has an unusual number of tipped balls for a QB that is 6’4”.
… Good
Hunter Henry had a big game with 8 catches on 11 targets for 90 yards and 2 TDs. What is more impressive is that the 2nd TD came after he got a knock earlier in the game.
Patriots’ Defense held the Pittsburgh Offense to 1 yard of total Offense in the 3rd. They held the Pittsburgh to 64 yards rushing at 2.5 yards per Carry. They also held Aaron Rodgers to 139 Yards Passing.
Robert Spillane had a nice INT and return. He also led the team with 15 tackles.
New England had an edge in Time of Possession of 33:20 to Pittsburgh’s 26:40. The Pats had 26 1st downs to the Steelers’ 17.
Head Coach Mike Vrabel has to get his act together. He ran a very soft Training Camp and is not holding any of the players accountable for penalties or turnovers. He stated after the game that we need Stephenson … NO WE DON’T. We can’t afford to have him putting the ball on the ground. He needs to go! Show the players on the team that turning the ball over is not acceptable. Elevate Terrell Jennings from the Practice Squad or find someone that won’t fumble.
Why isn’t our defense doing the same things by punching and knocking the ball out of the opposition’s hands.
How the hell is this team so good that they don’t have 53 players on the roster? For the last week, they have had only 52 players on the roster. If they had kept Jabrill Peppers, they would probably win this game today.
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Merrimack Valley native and lifelong fan of the New England Patriots. My earliest memories of the Patriots were attending as a child with my dad, the off-season practice at Phillips Academy. I was at the Patriots game at Harvard Stadium in 1970 where Bob “Harpo” Gladieux was called out of the stands by the stadium announcer over the PA to play in the game. Analyzing the draft since ESPN first started to televise it in 1980 and former writer for the Lowell Sun Newspaper.
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Excellent observations by Mark!